We are the Broken
by QteCuttlfish
Summary: Three years ago, the Chipmunks and Chipettes broke up, and nobody knows why. All six are drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they forgive one another? Are they destined to forever sing the blues? CHAPTER 20 up!
1. Gossip Girls

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Author email:  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Three years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

This fic takes place two years after the Chipmunks and the Chipettes graduated from high school. I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter One

Gossip Girls

"Don't forget to write your essay on the Shakespeare play of your choice," Professor Walsh said from the front of the room. "It's due next week. Class dismissed."

The young, female chipmunk sighed as she put her notebook away. She rubbed her eyes under her purple-framed glasses. It was probably time to change the prescription again. It was hard to believe only a few short years earlier she had worn contacts instead, courtesy of her older sister. She shook her head.

"Jeanette," the professor said.

She looked up. "Yes, Professor Walsh?"

"Very good work, today. Your comments added much to the discussion, as they usually do," she said.

"Thank you, Professor Walsh," Jeanette said, blushing. "Have a good weekend."

"Have a good weekend yourself," the professor said, as Jeanette walked out the door.

Jeanette walked over to the restroom. She did her business, and as she did so, a few girls from her class walked in. She couldn't help but hear their conversation, though she wished she couldn't.

"You know, I think I finally figured out where I know Jeanette from," one of them said.

"Jeanette? Oh, you mean Jeanette Miller?" the second said.

"Yeah," she said.

"Oh who cares? She's a chipmunk. What does it matter where she came from?" a third, snooty voice said.

"Haven't you ever heard of the Chipettes, Julie?" the first one said.

"Oh yeah, Alex!" the second girl said.

"The Chipettes?" Julie said. "Never heard of them."

"How about the Chipmunks? Have you heard of them?" Alex said.

"Yes, I have. I loved them when I was a child. I totally had a crush on Simon Seville when I was ten," Julie said. Jeanette felt her heart jump for a second. She had to squeeze her green eyes shut against the onslaught of memories his name conjured, especially the last happy memory she could remember with him, of being held in his arms while the song "Take My Breath Away" played at junior prom. She focused on the other girls' voices, to take the memory away.

"Oh really? I preferred Alvin, myself," the second girl said.

"You would, Clair," Julie said. Jeanette could imagine her rolling her eyes.

"Well, at least I know who the Chipettes were. I don't understand how you know who the Chipmunks are, but have no clue about the Chipettes," Clair retorted.

"My mother was creeped out by the thought of talking chipmunks," Julie said. "Of course, she couldn't know at the time that all chipmunks can talk, and that the fame of the Chipmunks would result in other chipmunks attending human schools. Anyway, she got rid of all my tapes and CD's, so I couldn't listen to them anymore."

"Well, the Chipettes were a group of female chipmunks that would occasionally sing with the Chipmunks. The two groups seemed to be friends for years. They even appeared in several movies together when they were teenagers," Alex said.

"And what does that have to do with Jeanette Miller?" Julie asked with a bored tone.

"Are you kidding?" Clair said. "Jeez, Julie! The last name of the Chipettes was Miller, and the middle sister was a nerdy girl named Jeanette!"

"So?" Julie scoffed. "That doesn't mean anything. Miller is a common name."

"But Jeanette isn't. Besides, look at this," Alex said. Jeanette heard the sound of a zipper being pulled down, and the shuffling of papers.

"Oh my god! You're right!" Clair said.

"Okay, the resemblance is striking. But how can you be sure?" Julie asked.

Jeanette gave up at that point. She really had other things to do. And at that point, thanks to all the memories the three girls had managed to trigger in her head, she badly wanted to call the only person who would understand what she was going through at that moment. She banged open the stall door. The three girls jumped, and shocked looks met her wounded one. Jeanette kept her head down, and washed her hands as fast as she could.

As she walked out, she heard Julie whisper to the other two. "I think you're right."

Jeanette walked as fast as she could out of the building, the image the three girls were looking at burned into her eyes. It was a picture from one of their album covers, their first album by themselves, without the Chipmunks. She looked quite similar to the way she had then: messy brown hair tied up into a pony-tail, purple glasses, and rumpled clothing. That particular day, she wore a lavender T-shirt with a jean skirt. Luckily, it was summer, so she wore sandals instead of shoes with socks falling down. Jeanette sighed. She had hoped people would never recognize her, even though she had known that it was most likely a false hope.

When they were thirteen, Brittany had gotten it into her head that all six of them—Chipmunks as well as Chipettes—should go for a more glamorous look, as befitting their status as superstars. Four of them had protested, but she unfortunately got Alvin on her side. Between the two of them, they were able to drag all four of the others into doing make-overs. Theodore and Eleanor had been placed on very strict diets. Simon and Jeanette were both forced to wear contacts. All six got different hairstyles and different wardrobes. Jeanette had been forced into clothes like all the popular girls at school were wearing, and she hadn't liked it. But that was how she looked in public, in the movies they had starred in, and everywhere she went. It wasn't until her senior year of high school that she had returned to her original looks, hoping that since so much time had passed, she would be able to blend in. Apparently that hope, like so many others in her life, was not to be realized.

Jeanette grabbed her cell phone and dialed a very familiar number in L.A.


	2. Diamond Doll

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Author email:  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Chapter Two

Diamond Doll

The rotund male chipmunk grabbed ingredients out of the refrigerator while singing "Witch Doctor." He piled them onto the counter, then grabbed his textbook from the kitchen table.

"Now let's see what the chef has to say about this recipe," he said while looking at it.

Suddenly, the song "Diamond Dolls" filled the air from his pocket. He pulled it out, already knowing who it was even without looking at the caller i.d.

"Hi Jeanette!" he said, smiling.

"Hey Theodore," she responded, but not with her usual enthusiasm.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

He heard her sigh on the other end. "Some girls in my Shakespeare class figured out who I am, and where I came from today. I heard them talking about it. It brought up a lot of memories," she said.

"Poor Jeanette!" Theodore said. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," she said. "But it did upset me. There are a lot of what-might-have-beens floating around, and they just made me think of them."

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "That's never good."

"No it's not," she said. "It's why I called. I needed to talk to the only one who understands what I'm going through."

"You could have called Eleanor," he offered.

"No I couldn't have, Theodore," she said in a quiet tone.

Theodore tilted his head. He supposed she was right. She couldn't have called Eleanor about this.

"How is she doing, by the way?" he asked, even as his mind screamed, _What are you doing? You know better than to do this to yourself!_

"Well, I think. I haven't talked to her in a month. But she seemed to like her sorority. She enjoys her classes. And according to Miss Miller, she raves about her basketball coach all the time. So I think she's doing well," Jeanette guessed.

Theodore paused. There was a question he wanted to ask, but wasn't sure he should. After a moment's pause, he chose to ask it.

"Is she seeing anyone right now?" The words practically burst out of him.

It was Jeanette's turn to pause. "She is, Theodore. She met him in one of her classes. He's a chipmunk named, ironically, Chip."

"Oh," was all he could say.

"What about you, Theodore? Are you still seeing Karen, from your culinary arts school?" she asked.

"No," he said. "We broke up over a crème recipe. She thought it should be made one way; I thought another." He sighed.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Theodore," she said.

Theodore shrugged, even knowing that Jeanette couldn't see it. "If she's happier elsewhere, then I don't have the right to make her stay."

Theodore paused. He hoped she wouldn't realize he wasn't really talking about Karen. When she didn't say anything, he realized she probably had guessed the truth.

"Are you seeing anyone?" he asked after a moment of silence.

She laughed. "Theodore, I don't have time to see anyone. My classes are all very hard, with heavy homework loads."

"But still, there's got to be someone in one of your classes?" he persisted.

"Not that I've seen so far. It could be that I'm just too picky," she said.

_Or maybe found the right one already, and I ruined it for you?_ A feeling of guilt swamped him.

"How are your classes going?" he changed the subject.

"Very well, Theodore," she said. "How's Dave doing?"

Theodore sighed. "He's doing as well as can be expected.

"Is he still managing Alvin's career?"

"And Brittany's, too, if you can believe that!" Theodore told her.

"What?! How is he managing that without them killing each other?" she asked.

"I don't know, Jeanette. But as far as I know, neither one of them has issued an ultimatum to him about not working with him as long as the other is still working with him, so that's one plus," Theodore said.

"Well, they both love him, so that might be why," she said.

_Not that it ever stopped either one of them before._ The words she didn't say hung in the air waves between them.

"Do you ever hear from Brittany?" Theodore asked.

"About as often as you hear from Simon," she answered.

A tear welled up in Theodore's eye. _So never then_, he thought.

A long pause fell between them.

"Well, I've got to go, Theodore. Thank you for listening," she said.

"No problem, Jeanette. Call me any time you need to talk," he said. "That offer will always stand."

"The door swings both ways, Theodore," Jeanette told him.

"I know," he affirmed. "Good-bye, Jeanette."

"Good-bye, Theodore," she said, ending the call.

Theodore looked at the phone for a moment, before sighing again. He staggered over to the kitchen table and sat down. He was no longer in the mood to cook. Too depressed. Many memories had been dredged up for him as well, some good, but some very bad in his opinion.

It was hard to believe it had been four years since anything felt normal to him. Most of the time, he forgot about this fact, and just dredged on with his life as usual. But today, he couldn't.

"Stop it!" he said to himself. "You can't change the past, and you must go on with the future!"

Having said that, he was able to stand up. This time, though, he walked over to the radio and switched it on. Theodore was just starting to get back into his recipe when the song "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" came on. He stamped over to the radio and switched it off, before running up the stairs to escape the memories that had suddenly engulfed him.


	3. E! True Hollywood Story

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Author email:  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Chapter Three

E! True Hollywood Story

The blonde-haired chipmunk walked into her sorority house with a smile on her face. Basketball practice had been really good today. She had felt like she couldn't lose, with all of the baskets she kept making. Coach Porter had even sent a kind word her way, unheard of, since Coach Porter was normally such a grouch. When he had complimented her on her performance, she had known for certain she was doing well.

She bounced into the house. She felt refreshed and excited for her date with Chip that night. The door banged behind her, as usual. Her brown eyes rolled. She had lived in this house for two years, and for some reason, no one could figure out how to close that door without it banging closed. Her shoulders shrugged. At least no one could sneak into the house via the doors (the back door was just as bad.)

"Hey Ellie!" one of her sorority sisters called from the living room.

Ellie could hear the sounds of loud commercials coming from the living room. She walked back there.

"Hi Melissa," she said, standing behind the couch. "What are you watching?"

"E! True Hollywood Story," Melissa answered. "How was practice?"

"It was awesome!" Ellie said. "I just hope the game tomorrow night goes as well as practice did."

"Cool!" Melissa exclaimed.

"Melissa, aren't you supposed to be in class?" Ellie asked.

"Who are you, my mother?" Melissa said.

"Yep, that's exactly who I am. So answer the question," Ellie said.

Melissa shrugged, and tilted her head up to look at her. "Yes, but it's a boring class, so I decided to ditch today."

Ellie shook her head, and was about to walk away when she caught sight of the screen. The words **Brittany Miller** flashed on the screen. Her brown eyes widened and she found herself walking over to the armchair next to the couch. Her eyes never left the screen.

"Oh awesome!" Melissa began. "This episode is about Brittany Miller of the Chipettes! I love them! Don't you, Ellie?"

Ellie nodded her head absently as the episode started. She saw flashes of Brittany's life: pictures from when she was little, concerts when they first started, pictures of the Chipettes and the Chipmunks together in public, scenes from their movies, and video of Brittany on the red carpet. She couldn't really listen to the words, at least not at first. She found herself swamped by memories. She remembered when all of those pictures had been taken, all of those concerts, being onstage with the Chipmunks, their friendships, working on those movies. Tears came into her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

Eventually, she realized that Melissa was watching her instead of the screen.

"Yes?" she said.

"Ellie, what is your last name again?" Melissa asked.

The chipmunk sighed. "Miller, Melissa," she said with a tired voice. "And yes, Ellie is short for Eleanor. I am that Eleanor Miller."

"Brittany Miller is your _sister_!" Melissa exclaimed.

Ellie nodded as an interview with Brittany began on the screen.

"So how is your relationship with your sisters now?" the interviewer asked.

"Oh, our relationship is as strong as it ever was," she said with a bright voice that Ellie recognized as false.

Ellie rolled her eyes.

"I heard your sisters are now in college. How are they enjoying it?"

"Wonderful! Of course, Jeanette—" _And how hard was it for you to even say the name, Brittany?_ Ellie thought. "was always the scholarly type, so college is right up her alley. And Eleanor is enjoying her sports scholarship."

Ellie shook her head. _Well, at least I know you're still speaking to Miss Miller._

"So what's it like being famous?" Melissa asked.

"Brittany's the famous one," Ellie said.

"Well, you used to be famous," Melissa said. "God, I can't believe I didn't recognize you! I was even at the last concert, the one where the Chipettes and the Chipmunks performed together right before the two groups broke up."

Ellie froze, hoping Melissa would not ask the question that had lingered over them ever since the middle of their senior year. Thankfully, she didn't.

"What were the Chipmunks like? I totally had a crush on one of them!" Melissa said.

"Which one?" Ellie said, expecting her to say Alvin.

Melissa blushed. "Theodore. I just thought he seemed so sweet!"

Ellie's jaw dropped. "He was."

Melissa put her hand over her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry. You used to date him, didn't you?"

Ellie shrugged. "I don't really like to talk about my personal life, when I'm talking about being Eleanor Miller of the Chipettes."

Melissa nodded. "I understand." She paused, then spoke up again. "Is that why you go by Ellie, so people won't know you used to be a Chipette?"

She nodded. The TV had caught her attention by then. She saw scenes of her sister that talked about her sister's party-hearty lifestyle that was comparative to Paris Hilton or the other Brittany. These scenes she could not take.

"Excuse me," she said, running into her room as fast as she could. She ignored Melissa's look of concern. All she could think of was escape. She slammed the door behind her and threw herself onto her bed.

_Oh Brittany_, she thought as she tried to stifle her tears. She had finished her crying three years earlier, and she refused to start up again. Time had moved on, and it was too late.

_I should call Chip_, she thought. _He'll cheer me up_.

As she sat up to do so, she ignored the secret voice inside her that said, _And possibly make you forget a pair of loving green eyes?_ She banished that voice to the darkest, most secret place in her heart, where her most closely guarded wish lay. The wish that one day, everything could and would be all right again among the six. Eleanor ignored that wish, knowing that wishing for the moon would be far more realistic. The six of them were just too stubborn.


	4. Will the Real Brittany Please Stand Up?

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Author email:  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note #1:

Thank you's go to DiceRox09, Dhanvantarie, Girl4Christ15, and ChipmunkFanatic, for their lovely reviews! They made my day! ^_^

Chapter Four

Will the Real Brittany Please Stand Up?

The first thing she noticed upon waking was the really bad taste in her mouth. The second was the fact that her mouth was quite dry. Then came the aching head. She blearily blinked open her blue eyes and the room spun for a moment.

_Where am I? _she thought, looking at the leopard print silk sheets. She gently lifted her head off the black pillow, taking care not to jerk her head up. She knew how much more in pain she would be if she did. The sheets next to her rustled, as something heavy with warmth turned over. She saw tousled blonde hair on the pillow next to her, and muffled a groan. _Sneaking out it is then,_ she thought. The parts of the male face she could see, she didn't recognize. _Brad? Brandon? Bradon?_ she thought until the pain in her head got too bad for her to think.

The chipmunk slowly sat up, her head pounding. She put her hands over her face for a brief moment. She did the best she could to keep from groaning from the pain as she collected her clothing from where it lay scattered around the room. Pink thong, a jean skirt, and neon pink crop top. Her legs shook as she grabbed everything. Unfortunately, an open bottle of Jack Daniels lay near her top, and there was still something in it. The few contents she had in her stomach heaved and she had to run into the bathroom to throw up. The toilet flushed, and she yanked on her clothes. She leaned over the sink, and rinsed out her mouth as best she could. Then she washed her face. As she dried her face with her towel, she caught sight of herself in the mirror.

Her auburn hair was cut into a spiky pageboy, with the front longer than the back. She ran her fingers through it, trying to restore it to some order. Her make-up had washed off with the water, thankfully, so her blue eyes would not resemble a raccoon's. Being a chipmunk got her enough flack in the media. _Brittany Miller, party girl Chipette_, she thought cynically.

Brittany grabbed her tiny purse and pulled her cell phone out.

"Monty here, Miss Miller," a male voice answered.

"Come pick me up in five minutes," she ordered.

"I'll be there in two, Miss Miller," he said.

In spite of her hangover, she smiled. _Good old Monty_, she thought, _always reliable._

Brittany grabbed her silver stiletto heels and sneaked out of the apartment. The sun blinded her, making her head ache even more. Her legs almost stopped supporting her, but she caught herself on the metal banister next to the steps. She sat down on the top step and put her shoes on. The concrete was really hot, and she didn't want to burn her feet. But it also meant being that much more careful walking down the steps. She hung onto the banister, like her life depended on it. _Why do I wear these shoes?_ She thought. _They're always torture devices the next day._ Brittany looked down at her feet. _There again, they are so cute._

She clung to the stairs, walking as slowly as she could, sliding her feet down each step. Thankfully, there were no paparazzi around. She breathed a sigh of relief. They must not have followed her last night. _Thank god_, she thought. Brittany was not up to dealing with that bunch today. She had even forgotten the sunglasses she normally wore in public. _Stupid_, she thought.

Her car already waited for her. Monty stood by the door. He smiled at her.

"Miss Miller," he playfully bowed to her.

"Monty," she said, nodding.

He opened the door for her, and she ducked in. He closed the door as she lay back against the seat, closing her eyes. She loved the comfort of these seats.

"Where to, Miss Miller?" he asked.

"Before I can think, I need," she began, then smiled as he handed her a cool bottle of Avian water. "Thank you, Monty."

"No problem, Miss Miller," he said.

Brittany opened the bottle and took a long gulp of water. _Oh, that hit the spot_, she thought.

"So, where am I supposed to be right now?" she asked.

"Well, according to the schedule your assistant faxed over to me, you don't have anything to do for two hours," he said.

Brittany grabbed the paper he handed to her. _Thank you, Leslie_, she thought. Her assistant was a godsend. Leslie Smith was efficient, loyal, and discrete. She also refused to judge Brittany in any way. The two of them were friends. Brittany considered Leslie the closest friend she had had in years…four years to be exact. She shook her head. Those were bad memories, and they always gave her a headache. And the headache she already had was bad enough.

"Do you think you have time to get me home, so I can shower and change?" she said.

"Of course, Miss Miller," he said.

There was a pause. Then, "Do you mind if I turn the radio on, Miss Miller?" she asked.

She winced, but she knew silence was annoying to most people. "As long as you keep it low," she said.

"I will, Miss Miller," he said. He switched the radio on. She leaned her head back again, her blue eyes closed.

Soon, she began humming to the music. Then her eyes jerked open and she shot up, then winced, pain shooting through her temples.

"You're living in a man's world, they tell us," the voices on the radio sang.

"But we ain't gonna buy it. The things they're trying to sell us now," she whispered along with the radio.

She remembered when they thought up that song, in Athens. Alvin and she had challenged one another to a rock and roll-off. Images flashed through her mind: running up to the ruins, beginning to sing together, the six of them dancing together, singing and dancing on the balloon. Her blue eyes filled up with tears. She wiped them away.

"Monty, you didn't happen to grab my mail on your way out, did you?" she asked.

"It's in the seat pocket in front of you, Miss Miller," he said.

Brittany leaned over to take it. _Junk mail, junk mail, bill, bill, junk mail,_ she thought, then paused. It was her copy of** Entertainment Weekly, **and Alvin Seville was on the cover, his latest slut, some underwear model, by his side. Soon, the images wavered from the moisture in her eyes. A wave of nausea took her over, and she grabbed a plastic bag she kept for these purposes.

Monty looked into the rear-view window as the sounds of retching filled the air. He shook his head. _Poor kid_, he thought. _She really needs help._

******

Author's Note #2:

This particular chapter is the main one I was talking about in my warning. I see Brittany without her family as turning into a Paris Hilton/Brittany Spears/party girl-type. It's not because I dislike her, because I don't. I love all six of them, though Jeanette and Simon are my favorites. I just see her as turning rather unstable without Eleanor or Jeanette to pull her back. I hope you continue to enjoy the fic.


	5. Playboy Alvin

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Author email:  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. There will also be brief instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Chapter Five

Playboy Alvin

The chipmunk sat down in the comfortable easy chair. Props people helped him put the microphone on. A blonde bombshell with steely gray eyes sat down across from him. He had to keep from squirming at the determined look in her eyes. _Act cool_, he told himself. He squared his features into a confident look with a smile described as "sexy 'munk" by all the teen magazines.

"And we're going to start filming in ten-nine-eight-seven-six-five-four-three-two-one," someone called.

The woman turned toward the camera with a big smile on her face. "Hello, everyone. Welcome back to Reel Hollywood Interviews. As you all know, I'm Erin Cohen, and my guest today is Alvin Seville, once known as the lead singer of Alvin and the Chipmunks, turned solo rock and roll star with an acting career." She turned toward Alvin. "Alvin, welcome."

"Hello Erin," he said with a charming grin.

Alvin turned his mind off while she started in on inane questions about his career, typical par-for-the-course interview questions. He could do these kinds of interviews in his sleep. Until...

"Alvin, be honest. How has life been since you went solo? I've heard things between you and your brothers haven't been good since your contracts ran out in high school," she said.

She went for the jugular, as he should have known she would. _Damn exes!_ he thought. Alvin gripped the arm of the chair tightly. Luckily, his hands had already been holding the arms of the chair, so no one, not even Erin who was the closest to him, could tell when he started holding onto the chair for dear life.

"Well, Erin, I've heard those same rumors, and nothing could be further from the truth. Things between my brothers and me are fine. Thank you for asking," he said.

Her lips thinned. He knew why. She had seen him with Theodore once, and she knew things weren't that great between them. However, she couldn't say anything without Alvin spinning it so she would look like a jealous, scorned woman. _Note to self: never hook up with a reporter ever again_, he thought. _Too much trouble._

"Well, that's good to know. Can't blame a girl for trying. After all, everyone has been dying to know why the Chipmunks broke up," she said.

Alvin shrugged with a charming smile. "It's just as we said. We all wanted to try our own things. My brothers wanted to try college, and I wanted a solo career. That's it."

"You can't blame everyone for wondering if there is more to it," she said.

"Of course not," he nodded with an insincere voice. _When will people just let us be? _He wondered. "Let me reassure you. There is nothing more to it than that." Alvin stuck to the story that was the last thing he, his brothers, and the Chipettes ever agreed on: what to say to the public when they were asked about the break-ups of the two bands. Of course, they'd only agreed to it because Dave forced the six of them to do so. _But I have to admit, Dave was right. We needed to keep it from the public,_ Alvin thought.

There was a pause in the interview. Alvin got nervous at that point. He could literally see the wheels turning in her head. She wanted to put him on the spot. _Nothing like a woman scorned_, he thought. _I will never hook up with another reporter ever again._

"So Alvin, how is your love life going right now?" She hit out with the question. "I saw that this week you are with model Giselle Rousseau. How is that going?"

Alvin had to keep from reacting to her question. _Shit!_ he thought. He should have known she would ask about that. His love life was the main part of his life everyone speculated about.

"It's going well. She's really great," he said with an edgy smile. It was exactly what he had said about her four months earlier. It was what he said about _all_ of them when asked._ Well, it's no one's business anyway!_ he thought defensively.

"Oh," she said with a tight smile. "That's good to know. I wonder, though. How do you keep them all straight? You go through so many of them."

Alvin had no answer to that. He had never been asked that question before. She smiled in satisfaction and turned to the camera.

"And that's all we have time for," she said, with a wave. "Thank you for being here, Alvin." She offered her hand to him. He looked at it for a minute, before reaching out to shake it.

"Thank you for having me, _Erin_," he said in a biting tone.

"And that's a wrap!" someone called from behind the camera.

Alvin pulled his hand away from her. He yanked the microphone off and threw it on his chair. He stormed off the set, right toward Dave, who handed him his coffee.

"I told you it wasn't a good idea to see a reporter, Alvin," Dave said in a low tone.

Alvin glared at Erin, who smirked at him. She tossed her hair and turned her back on him.

"I thought she was hot," he said through clenched teeth.

He heard Dave sigh. "At least you kept your cool," Dave offered. "Good job on that."

"Thanks," he snapped. He continued glaring at Erin, as she sauntered off. "Why did you book me for this interview?"

"I didn't," Dave said. "You booked it four months ago."

Alvin turned to look at Dave in surprise. Then he remembered. _Oh_, he thought sheepishly.

"While I was still seeing her?" he asked.

"Yes," Dave told him.

"Oh." Alvin was surprised. He cleared his throat in embarrassment. "Is the car here? Can I get out of here?"

"It should be," Dave said. "After all, you have to go from here to rehearsal."

"I remember," Alvin said, as the two of them began walking out of the studio.

There was silence between the two of them for several minutes. Alvin felt Dave tensing beside him. _That's not good_, he thought, _Dave's gathering his courage for something._

"Good job on keeping to the story about why the Chipmunks broke up," Dave told him.

"You repeat something often enough..." Alvin shrugged.

"Just one thing though," Dave began. "Theodore isn't technically going to a college or a university. He's attending the California School of Culinary Arts."

"He's still going to school," Alvin insisted.

"Yeah, but anything that looks like things aren't good between you guys isn't good for your image. Someone might look further into things," Dave said.

Alvin snorted. "Erin won't. She knows better. I know too much about her, and I could easily make her look like a jealous hag. She wouldn't be able to live with that."

"Well, just be careful," Dave said. He paused, then spoke again. "Just so you know, Simon's going to Cornell University in Ithaca, New York."

Alvin's entire body tensed, as it always did when that name was mentioned. "Uh-huh," he muttered.

"He seems to be doing well. He likes his classes," Dave said.

"Uh-huh," Alvin muttered again, clenching his fists.

"He also likes his roommate. They seem to have a lot in common," Dave continued.

Alvin stopped. "Dave, I don't want to hear about Simon."

"But Alvin, it's been two years. And he is your brother," Dave said.

"He forgot that first!" Alvin snapped.

"Al—" Dave started but was interrupted.

"Dave!" Alvin almost shouted. "I haven't spoken to him in two years. It's worked out well for both of us. I don't want to see, speak to, or even hear about him, EVER AGAIN. Do you understand that?"

Alvin didn't wait for his answer, and stormed off. He opened the door to his limo, and slammed it shut. Theodore, he could handle hearing about. Theodore still lived with Dave. He wasn't on the other side of the country. He also wasn't the one who had lied to everyone. As far as Alvin was concerned, he only had one brother.

Dave watched Alvin get into his limo with sad eyes. He shook his head and walked away. _Oh Alvin_, he thought. _Am I ever going to get my family back?_

Author's Note:

I hope you all enjoy this chapter. So far, it's been the hardest chapter to write. I don't know why. ^_^; I hope you find it as good as the rest of the story so far. Thank you.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the previous chapter! They are always wonderful to get! ^_^


	6. Dr Seville, I Presume?

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Chapter Six

Dr. Seville, I Presume?

"I just loved what you said about DNA today, Simon," his fellow student said to him with a sweet smile.

The tall chipmunk adjusted his blue-framed glasses while he finished putting away his books.

"Thank you, Lisa," Simon said.

"How did you get to be so smart?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I was just born that way."

The redhead bit her lip. Simon started to walk out of the classroom. She walked quickly to keep up with him.

"Where are you going next?" she asked him.

"Back to my dorm room. I have a test tomorrow morning that I have to study for," he told her.

"Which dorm do you live in?" she asked.

He told her, and her brown eyes widened. "That's close to me. Can I walk with you?" she asked.

Simon agreed. The two of them talked about their class the whole way back to Simon's dorm. Simon tried to pay attention to the conversation, but his mind was on his test the next day. He had to get an A on it. He sighed. _A's are pretty much the only thing I've got in my life right now_, he thought.

"Are you okay?" Lisa asked.

He turned to look at her, surprise in his blue-gray eyes. "Oh? I'm fine," he said. "Just thinking about my test."

"Is it going to be a tough one?" she queried.

"Hey Simon!" a voice yelled as they walked up to the entrance of his dorm.

They both turned to look at a jeans and T-shirt-clad figure running towards them.

"Hey Mike," Simon greeted him with a wave.

"Hey, who's this?" Mike asked, looking at Lisa.

"Mike, this is Lisa," Simon indicated her. "Lisa, this is my roommate, Mike."

"Nice to meet you Lisa," Mike said, shaking hands with her.

"You too," she said.

An awkward silence fell among the three of them as each searched for something to say. Well, two of them searched for something to say. The third was just waiting until he could get into his dorm room and start studying for his test.

"Well, I should probably go in," Mike said looking from one to the other.

"I should probably let you go study," Lisa said to Simon.

"It was nice talking to you, Lisa," Simon said.

"You too," she answered. "Bye Mike." She walked away, then turned around hesitantly. "Um, Simon?"

"Yeah?" he said.

"What are you doing Friday night?" she asked. "There's a film festival going on that night, and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me."

Simon blushed as Mike nudged him. "Um, I have a project due on Monday that I need to work on this weekend. Sorry."

"Oh," she said, disappointment clear in her voice. "Well, I'll see you in class on Friday."

Simon nodded. "Bye Lisa." He turned to walk inside the dorm, and caught sight of Mike's look of incredulity.

"What?" Simon asked.

Mike shook his head and walked inside.

"What?" Simon repeated, following him. Mike unlocked their dorm room and opened it. Both guys dropped their stuff; Mike's went on the floor, while Simon's landed on the bed.

"What?" Simon repeated again, looking at Mike.

"I don't believe you, man," Mike continued shaking his head. "You used to be part of a famous rock group. You've been in movies. People know who you are. You're famous! Girls fall over you all the time and you don't even notice!"

"What are you talking about?" Simon asked, his brows furrowing.

Mike glared at him. "You just turned that girl down, and for what? Some lame-ass excuse!"

"It wasn't lame! I really do have a project due on Monday," Simon insisted.

"A project I know for a fact you finished two weeks ago," Mike said. "Man, when was the last time you had a date?"

Simon shrugged. "I have more important things on my mind than dating."

He turned his back on Mike and started unpacking his backpack.

Mike snorted. "Like what? Studying? Most people don't study twenty-four/seven, as you seem to do. You could go on a date or go to a party once in awhile. But you've never done that! I've never seen you with any girl, since I met you freshman year!"

Simon ignored that. His hand gripped his bag hard. He couldn't answer Mike. His jaw locked in anger.

Mike sighed. "I'm going to lunch. I'll see you there."

"Yeah," Simon muttered. The door closed hard behind Mike. Simon walked over to it, and leaned against it, breathing hard. His blue-gray eyes closed. _You really want to know why I haven't dated anyone in two years?_ he thought in anger. An image came into mind, an image of a female chipmunk with messy brown hair in a bun and shy green eyes framed in purple glasses. His heart clenched in pain and he slammed his hand against the door. _God, how could I have screwed that up so badly?_ he asked himself for the millionth time. Simon opened his eyes. He tilted his head against the door. His eyes searched around the room and landed on his desk. He sighed. _Do I dare look at it?_ he asked himself. _Yes_, his heart answered.

Simon walked over to the desk next to the bed. He sat down on the bed, and leaned over to open the lower left drawer. His hands searched through it, until he reached the bottom. A black picture frame lay at the very bottom. He pulled it out, and flipped it over.

Eight figures posed in the picture, six chipmunks and two humans. Simon smiled sadly at it. The picture had been taken the day the movie they had shot over the summer between sophomore and junior years of high school had wrapped. Alvin and Brittany were about to start an on-again phase of their on-again, off-again relationship. Alvin had his left arm around Brittany, and she cuddled close to him. Theodore and Eleanor sat in front of Alvin and Brittany. Right before the picture was taken, Theodore had yanked Eleanor into his lap. The two of them had been together ever since the Homecoming dance of their freshman year. They were laughing in the picture. Dave stood next to Alvin, while Miss Miller stood on the other side, next to Simon. In the picture, Simon had both arms wrapped around the only girl he had ever loved. _Jeanette._ Jeanette laughed at Theodore and Eleanor's antics. But in the picture, Simon had eyes only for Jeanette. His feelings for her were clear in this picture, though the two of them were not together at that time, and had never been together as a couple. The two of them were the center of the picture.

Simon gently ran his thumb over the picture, particularly over where Jeanette stood. He shook his head.

_We all look so happy in this picture,_ he thought. _Too bad those days will never come again._

Simon turned the picture over, and gently placed it back where it belonged in the drawer. Then he grabbed his notes and his book needed for the test, and began studying.

******

Author's Note:

Thank you's to THTfriends, PurpleFox93, DiceRox09, Girl4Christ15, chipmunkandchipettelover, and Dhanvantarie for sending me those lovely reviews! ^_^

I hope you continue to enjoy this fic!


	7. Dave Don't Drive

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Thank yous to Northgalus2002, Jeannettelove120, Girl4Christ15, and chipmunkandchipettelover for your wonderful reviews! I love getting them, and they really help in writing this story! So thanks, guys! I also love the questions I keep getting. They let me know that I'm doing my job as a writer! ^_^ I hope you guys can be patient, though. Some of those questions won't be answered in full for quite some time. ~_^ Hope you enjoy!

Chapter Seven

Dave Don't Drive

The older man got out of his car, keeping his eyes on his son climbing out of the limo. Alvin looked at him and walked over.

"Dave, I can take this from here. You can go deal with the _other_ chipmunk whose career you manage," Alvin spat the word _other_ as though it were a dirty word.

Dave looked from Alvin to the concert hall and back again. "Are you sure?"

Alvin rolled his eyes. "I'm an adult now, Dave."

Dave smiled sadly. "But you'll always be my son."

"Whatever, Dave," Alvin said, but not unkindly. "I'll see you at the concert tonight." Alvin waved at him and walked away.

Dave watched Alvin until he entered the building, then shook his head and got back into his car. _Alvin's right about one thing,_ he thought,_ I really should call Brittany._

He hooked his headset to his cell phone so he could talk. Dave activated the voice dialing.

"Call Brittany," he said.

The phone began to ring. Well, sort of. Music actually began to play. It played for about a minute.

"Hello?" Brittany's voice was finally heard on the other end.

"Hello, Brittany," Dave said.

"Dave!" she exclaimed. "How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, Brittany. How are you doing?" he asked her.

There was a slight pause on the other end. "I'm doing great!"

"Brittany," Dave said in a warning tone. He could almost see her roll her eyes.

"All right, all right. I was at a party last night," Brittany caved. "And it was fantastic!"

"And how much of it do you remember?" he asked.

"As much as can be expected," Brittany said.

_So nothing then,_ he thought. _Brittany, when will you learn?_

"Brittany, we're been over this. How can you expect to get up early and work, if you're out partying the night before?" Dave questioned.

"Oh, Dave, you're such a worry-wart," Brittany told him.

"Well, one of us needs to worry about your career," he pointed out.

"And that's what I pay you for!" she said lightly.

Dave shook his head. "You're not planning on partying tonight, are you?"

"Of course I am. When aren't I?" she said.

"Because you have to be up at 8 tomorrow for an interview," he told her. "So no partying."

"Aww! But Dave!" Brittany pouted.

"I mean it, Brittany. No partying tonight," he commanded. "Promise me."

"Oh Dave!" she exclaimed. Then after a pause, "I promise."

"Thank you," he said.

"But I'll just have to party that much harder tomorrow night, to make up for it!" she said.

Dave rolled his eyes. _She'll never change,_ he thought. Then he thought of a request Miss Miller had made of him not too long ago. He took a deep breath.

"Brittany, have you heard from any of your sisters lately?" he asked.

Dave felt the temperature plummet. He felt his heart clench, and hoped this would go okay.

"No," Brittany said in a frosty tone. "And I don't expect to."

"Why not, Brittany?" Dave asked in a kind tone.

"Dave, I know you and Miss Miller keep trying to help, but honestly, there is nothing you can do. I do not speak to or of either one of those traitors, nor do I speak to any of the _others_ involved," Brittany snapped.

"Brittany," Dave began.

"Oh, look, it's my other line. I have to go now, Dave. I'll talk to you later!" she said, hanging up.

Dave listened to the dial tone, before pressing "end." He shook his head. _Well, that went well, _he thought in disgust. _Why can't I get any of them to tell me what happened?_

Dave's eyes watched the road in front of him, then flicked to the time. He realized he needed to call Theodore.

"Call Theodore," he told his phone.

It did so. Not long after the phone began to ring, Theodore answered.

"Hi Dave!" Theodore said.

"Hello Theodore. I was just calling to see if you would be home for dinner tonight," Dave asked.

"Aren't I always?" Theodore laughed. "Will you?"

"Not tonight. I have Alvin's concert to go to tonight," Dave told him.

"Oh," Theodore said.

"Why don't you come with me?" Dave asked.

"Oh, no, Dave. I don't think Alvin would like that much," Theodore backed off that.

Dave sighed. "When are you guys going to tell me what happened among the six of you?"

"Dave, it would do you no good to know. What happened started at the end of our junior year of high school and finished by the beginning of our senior year. That was three years ago, Dave. It's history now, and there's nothing anyone can do to fix it," Theodore said. "Please leave it alone."

Dave yielded to the pleading in Theodore's voice, as he always did. "All right, Theodore," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Good-bye, Dave," Theodore said.

The phone clicked off. Dave looked at it for a moment, thinking about his sons, and the girls he thought of as daughters. Once he thought the time would come when they would be his daughters. He sighed. He just wished one of the six would tell him what happened. But none of them ever had.

Dave had an idea that it had begun with the student council elections near the end of their junior year, the elections that would decide the next year's student council. Brittany and Alvin had chosen to run against one another. Eventually, Brittany had won. But that was nothing new between them. They had always competed against one another, even when they were a couple, as they had been right before the elections started. But things had seemed fine among the rest of them. Sure, things were a bit tense with Brittany and Alvin constantly snapping at each other. Otherwise, though, things seemed fine. But then all of a sudden, the house erupted into constant screaming fights. Dave never knew what they were about. Suddenly, though, Alvin was not talking to Simon and constantly snapped at Theodore, Simon was not talking to either one of his brothers, and the Chipettes were never seen at the Seville house anymore. Dave had called Miss Miller, to see if she knew what was going on, but she said a similar thing was going on at her house. There had been several days' worth of shouting matches, and then Brittany was no longer talking to either one of her sisters, and whenever Eleanor did speak to Jeanette, she snapped at her.

At a premiere the six of them went to together, it was obvious things were worse than ever. None of them were talking to each other. The press was beginning to get wind of it, but Dave intervened before the press could do more than speculate. He had sat all six of them down together, and explained that their careers and reputations were on the line, and that they couldn't take this feud into the public eye. They owed it to themselves not to have the bad publicity that would come with a public feud between the Chipmunks and the Chipettes. All six agreed to behave themselves. Later, separately, both Jeanette and Simon told Dave they weren't interested in renewing their contracts when they ran out at the end of the year. Eleanor and Theodore later said they weren't sure whether they wanted to continue either. So Dave sat them all down again, and asked them what the future of the Chipettes and the Chipmunks looked like. Alvin and Brittany insisted they wanted solo careers, and didn't want to be part of a band anymore. Not long after that, they publicly announced the break-up of the two bands. All six insisted the parting was amicable, and that they all just wanted to do their own things.

Dave had spent those last few months hoping and praying that something would change, that the six of them would miraculously start talking to one another. But they didn't. They had one more movie they had to do to fulfill their contract, and the atmosphere on the set was poisonous. The only light moment was when Dave noticed Jeanette and Theodore sitting down and talking to one another. After that, the two of them spent time together, ignoring the dagger glares thrown at them by their siblings. The friendship between the two of them was the only relationship that survived whatever it was that had happened. Nothing was left of any of the other friendships, the romantic relationships, nor, worst of all, was anything left of the close sibling relationships.

Dave shook his head, his thoughts so focused inwardly that he was shocked when he saw the front of the black pick-up truck slam into the driver's side of his car. He heard the horrible crunching sound of metal crumpling.

_Thank God I'm wearing a seatbelt, _he thought as the force threw his body towards the right.

Everything blacked out.


	8. Bad News for Theodore

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later. The lyrics mentioned in this fic belong to the songs "Home" and "Witch Doctor," neither of which belong to me either.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Chapter Eight

Bad News for Theodore

"Well I'm going home, back to the place where I belong, and where your love has always been enough for me," Chris Daughtry's voice sang from the radio.

Theodore listened to the song for a minute, before returning his attention to the list of ingredients he needed to make a lobster bisque. He had returned to the kitchen after calming down from his phone call with Jeanette. He sat at the kitchen table. Theodore just hoped this station would not play any of the old hits from the Chipmunks or the Chipettes. Or any of the new hits from Alvin or Brittany.

_Alvin, _he thought. _I wish I could go to that concert._ He shook his head. Alvin would never allow him to be at any of his concerts or his premieres anymore. Things weren't quite as bad between Alvin and him as they were between Alvin and Simon, but they were still pretty bad.

_Ding-dong!_ The doorbell rang. Theodore looked towards it in surprise. _I'm not expecting any guests,_ he thought. He checked the time. _And Dave should be helping to set up Alvin's concert tonight._

_Ding-dong!_ The doorbell rang again. He stood up and walked over.

"I'm coming," he called, as the doorbell rang again. He opened the door, to see two uniformed police officers standing in front of him.

"Ca-can I help you?" he asked, his heart leaping a bit. _Please don't say this is about Alvin._

One of the officers looked down at her notebook. "Are you Theodore Seville?"

He nodded. "Yes I am. What is this about?"

"Are you the next of kin for a Mr. David Seville?" she asked.

_Dave?_ he thought, feeling like he had fallen into ice water. _Why would the police ask me asking about Dave? _

"Yes, I am," he said, knowing that Dave had listed Theodore as his next of kin. "What is this about?" _And please say it's just about some court date Dave has tomorrow. Please, please say it's about a court date._

"I'm sorry to inform you of this, but this afternoon, the driver of a green pick-up truck lost control of his car for a second, and hit David Seville's car on the driver's side, pushing him into another car next to him," she said. "The drivers and passengers of the other two cars have minor injuries and were released from the hospital right away."

Theodore froze, his heart pounding. He swallowed hard.

"Wh-what about Dave? I-is he o-okay?" Theodore asked, clenching the doorframe like a lifeline.

"He is listed under critical condition, and is currently in the I.C.U ward of Cedar Sinai Hospital," she explained.

"C-c-can I s-s-see him?" Theodore asked.

"Yes, you can," she said. "I'm terribly sorry."

The two officers walked away from the house. Theodore just stared after them, unable to move for several minutes. He couldn't move. He could barely breathe.

_Miss Miller,_ he thought. _Must call Miss Miller. Miss Miller will know what to do._

With stiff, mechanical movement, Theodore walked back into the kitchen. He didn't register closing the door. He dialed Miss Miller's phone number. After a few rings, he heard her answer.

"I told the witch doctor I was in love with you," she sang. "Hello?"

"Miss Miller?" he croaked. Theodore cleared his throat.

"Yes? Who is this?" she said.

"Theodore, Miss Miller," he answered.

"Oh, Theodore, how are you doing?" she asked.

"Not so good, Miss Miller. Dave was in a car accident," Theodore said, his eyes filling up with tears.

"What?!" she exclaimed. "When? Where?"

"I-I-I don't know," he cried. He began sobbing over the phone.

"Calm down, calm down, Theodore. Which hospital?"

"Ce-ce-cedar Sinai," he said, shaking.

"Are you in any condition to drive?" she asked.

"I think so," he said, sniffling, and wiping his face with a tissue.

"Well, why don't you get there, and find out how he is, okay?" Miss Miller said.

"Okay, Miss Miller," he said, starting to calm down now that he had a plan of action.

For the rest of his life, Theodore would never know how he got from his house to Cedar Sinai. His mind had turned into fog, and he saw everything as though he were looking at the opposite end of a telescope. Nothing was in focus, and everything seemed very far away.

Somehow, he found himself parked. He walked into the hospital. Later, he knew he must have asked where to go, because he ended up outside Dave's hospital room. He felt like he was moving in slow motion. Dave lay there unconscious, surrounded by tubes and machines that made beeping noises. A cast covered his left arm, and a bandage was wrapped around his head. His right leg was elevated, and also in a cast. Theodore sat down next to him, tears falling from his eyes.

"Dave?" he said in a quiet voice.

Dave gave no indication that he heard him.

"Dave, please make it through," he begged.

He couldn't look at Dave for long. His eyes wandered through the room. They landed on a picture that must have been taken out of Dave's wallet by a sympathetic nurse. It was picture of Alvin, Simon, and Theodore, one of the last pictures the three of them had taken together. Theodore froze. _They don't know yet!_ he thought.

He pulled out his phone and dialed Alvin's number, knowing that due to the concert, Alvin would not answer. The phone rang several times.

"This is Alvin. Talk to me after the beep," the message said.

"Alvin, it's Theodore. Dave's been in a car accident! He's listed as critical at Cedar Sinai Hospital. Please come here as soon as you get this message!" Theodore told the voicemail before hanging up the phone.

His green eyes stared at the picture, at the final Seville. _Should I call him?_ he wondered. _He probably won't answer. But I could leave a message. He'll probably delete it before he listens to it, though. _Theodore went back and forth, but his conscience finally got to him. He dialed Simon's number.

The phone cut off fairly quickly, as though someone had looked at who it was, and turned the phone off. Theodore's heart clenched. _I probably shouldn't have tried calling him freshman year of college._

He dialed the number a second time. This time, it rang only once before he got the voicemail.

"You have reached Simon Seville. Please leave your name, number, and brief message, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can," Simon's voice said.

Theodore closed his eyes. This was the first time he had heard Simon's voice in years, aside from old recordings of it, and the movies they were in.

"Um, Simon? This is your brother, Theodore. I know you told me to never call you, but I hope you'll listen to this. Dave was in a car accident. He's in critical condition. Please call me when you get this," he said, before hanging up the phone.

_Please, please listen to that message, Simon_, he thought, willing his brother to do so.

At one point, a doctor walked into the room.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Mary Standish," she said.

"Theodore Seville," he said. "Dave's my father. How is he doing?"

"Well, as of right now, your father has a broken arm, a smashed knee, and a sprained ankle, as well as various cuts and bruises. It is his head injury that concerns me most, though. He hit his head on the steering wheel," she said.

"What about the air bag?" Theodore asked.

"The police said that the airbag didn't deploy due to a short in the electrical system in the car," she explained.

"Oh," he said in a small voice. "Is he going to be okay?"

Her eyes looked away from his. "It's too soon to tell as of now, Theodore. If he wakes up within the next few days, we'll know more."

Theodore may not have been the smartest of his brothers, but no one could have had Alvin as a brother, nor spent as much time with Brittany as he had without knowing when someone was being hedgy with him. He knew the doctor wasn't telling him everything. Unfortunately, he wasn't like his brothers. Simon could probably run verbal circles around this doctor, and Alvin would demand to know more. But he wasn't like them, and couldn't say anymore. He just nodded, and she left the room.

Hours passed as Theodore sat there looking at Dave. Eventually, he fell asleep to the sound of the beeping machines. The next thing he felt was someone shaking his shoulders.

"Wake up, Theodore," a kind voice said to him.

He rubbed his eyes, and Miss Miller stood there.

"Hello, Theodore," she said to him.

"Hi Miss Miller," he said. "What time is it?"

"It's about midnight, Theodore," she said. "I thought you might be here still."

"Of course I am," he said. "I'm not leaving Dave's side until he wakes up."

She shook her head. "You need to go home, Theodore. David wouldn't want you making yourself sick, now would he? Of course not. You also have class you have to go to tomorrow." He tried to interrupt, but she kept speaking right over him. "You go home now. I'll stay with David until you can get here after your classes tomorrow. We'll switch places, okay?"

Theodore looked from her to the still form of Dave. He nodded at her. She smiled.

"Go home, Theodore," she said.

"Thank you, Miss Miller," he told her. He kept his eyes on Dave until he got out of the room. Someone hit his shoulder.

"Watch it!" the person said.

"Alvin?" Theodore asked.

Alvin stopped. "Theodore, what are you still doing here?"

"I've been here ever since before I called you," he said.

Alvin looked at the hospital room. "How is he?"

Theodore shrugged. "Unconscious, with a broken arm, sprained ankle, and a smashed knee, along with several cuts and bruises."

"Why are you leaving?" Alvin demanded.

"Miss Miller made me. She says Dave would want me to go to class tomorrow and not get sick," he said. "I'll be back after class tomorrow."

Alvin nodded. "I'm going in now. Bye." He walked off. Theodore watched him go into the hospital room. He wished he could talk to Alvin, that they could be there to help each other during this. But that was not to be, and it would take a miracle to change anything. He sighed and walked out of the hospital.

******

Author's Note:

I apologize for any mistakes I may have made in locations, medical procedures, or informing procedures. I did the best I could. So I hope you will forgive me, for the sake of the fic.

Thank you to everyone who is reading, but especially to THTfriends, Girl4Christ15, DiceRox09, and PurpleFox93, for reviewing! I'm glad all of you are enjoying this fic. ^_^ And Girl4Christ15, you guys make it easy to want to update ASAP! ^_^


	9. Bad Day

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later. The lyrics to the song "Bad Day" do not belong to me either.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Chapter Nine

Bad Day

"Because you had a bad day, you're taking one down, you sing a sad song just to turn it around!" began playing in Jeanette's head. She opened her eyes and groaned, realizing it was her phone. The song continued playing as she groped for the phone, missing it on the first try. She finally grabbed it.

"Hello?" she said groggily.

"Jeanette?" Theodore's voice was on the other end.

"Theodore?" she said. Her hand reached over to search for her glasses, which she grabbed and shoved on, before checking the time. "It's 5 a.m."

"Yes, I know, but it's an emergency," he said, in a small voice.

"What kind of emergency?" she asked, knowing from the tone in Theodore's voice that it had to be serious.

"Dave's been in a car accident," he said.

She shot up in her bed. "What?!" she exclaimed.

"Do you mind?" her roommate snapped from across the room.

"Sorry," Jeanette said, climbing out of bed. She wore a lavender tank top with black sweatpants. She grabbed her key and walked out into the hallway. "How is he?"

"He's still in the hospital," Theodore said, sounding like he was trying not to cry.

"How bad are his injuries?" she whispered in the foyer of her dorm.

"Bad. But things are looking up," he said.

"Oh?" she inquired.

"He was unconscious when I left the hospital, but Miss Miller left me a message on my phone telling them that Dave woke up about an hour ago," Theodore explained.

Jeanette breathed deep. "Well, that's good. How long do you think he'll be in the hospital for?"

"I don't know, Jeanette," he said. "Most of his injuries are okay. I mean, they don't seem to be serious or anything. He has a smashed knee, a sprained ankle, and a broken arm. But he does have a head injury, due to his airbag not deploying."

"Why didn't his airbag deploy?" Jeanette asked. "That sounds like a law suit waiting to happen."

"Except it's not. It's because of how the truck hit him, so it's not the manufacturers' fault," Theodore said.

Jeanette sighed. "How bad is his head injury?"

She heard Theodore begin to cry on the other end of the phone, and her heart broke for him. She wished she could hug him, but a few thousand miles separated them.

"I-I-I don't know, Jeanette! The doctors won't tell me! I know it's bad, but they won't tell me how bad! I wish you were here, or Simon was here. Simon could get them to tell him, and he would understand the scientific explanation! But you're both on the other side of the country!" Theodore sobbed.

"Oh Theodore," she said, just listening to him cry. Her green eyes filled with tears. "I wish I were there too."

The two of them cried together on the phone for several minutes. Jeanette tried to cry as quietly as she could, knowing very well that she could easily wake the other people on her floor up. She padded into the bathroom at one point to get some toilet paper to blow her nose with, and wipe her eyes with. She wasn't going to go back into her dorm room until she was quiet. Her roommate deserved to sleep. Eventually, the tears on both ends of the phone subsided.

"Is there anything I can do?" she asked gently.

"Just listening to me helps," he said, calming down.

"Well, I'll always be here to listen, so feel free to call me at any time," she said. Then she paused. There was another question she needed to ask, but wasn't sure she could. "Have you told your brothers yet?"

Theodore sighed. "I called Alvin. I had to leave a message, because he was performing. But he got there right after the concert ended." He breathed deep. "I tried to call Simon, but the first time I called, he turned off the phone. The second time, it only rang once, and I left a message."

"Did he get the message?" Jeanette asked.

"I don't know. I doubt it. He probably deleted the message without even listening to it. He said he would if I ever called him again," Theodore said.

"But that was two years ago! And surely he must have thought about emergencies? What if something happened to Dave, as it just did? How could anyone get in touch with him?" she asked. "Because we both know Alvin won't call him, and Simon's even less likely to answer the phone even if Alvin called him."

"I don't know," Theodore said. "But I should probably let you get a little more sleep before you have to go to class. Thanks for listening."

"No problem, Theodore. Thank you for letting me know. And Theodore, if you need anything from me, anything at all, please do not hesitate to call. I would not have minded getting a phone call last night, you know," she said.

"I know. I just wasn't thinking properly last night. I'll keep you updated," he said.

"Thank you. I'll talk to you later," she said.

"Bye Jeanette!"

"Bye Theodore!"

The two of them hung up. Jeanette walked over to a chair in the lobby and sat in it, pulling her feet up. She put her hands to her forehead, and shook her head. _I can't believe this is happening, _she thought. _Dave has to be okay. He has to be._ She wouldn't let herself think of anything else, even though she knew that head injuries were serious things. _Dave has to be okay._ She kept repeating that mantra in her head for several minutes.

_Poor Theodore. I wonder if he's right about Simon._ She hoped he wasn't. Her heart went out to the tallest Chipmunk. _Simon will hate himself if he erased that message, and finds out later what it was about. _She wondered if there was any way anyone could get a message to him. Then she thought of something. Simon was attending Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. It was only about a four-hour drive from where she was, at Colombia University in New York. Oddly enough, they had moved all the way across the country to end up in the exact same state. She shook her head. _Simon, I really hope you didn't erase that message, for your sake._ Jeanette sighed, and walked back to her room, knowing there was no way she was going to be able sleep, at least not until she heard whether Dave was going to be okay or not. So she decided to start her day, her mind forcing itself to concentrate, so she could be strong for Theodore.

_After all, he is the only one who will let me be there for him anymore_, she thought sadly as the door closed behind her. _I wonder if my sisters know about Dave? _She wrote down a note to call Eleanor later, to see if Miss Miller had called her to tell her.

The note slipped down from her desk, and she didn't notice, her mind too far gone to notice small details. She quietly began to get ready for the day ahead of her, thinking about the ringer she had on her phone for Theodore, as it was one of the songs the Chipmunks had covered at one point. _It will be a bad day indeed_, she thought._ Please be okay, Dave. You have to be. Please._

******

Author's Note:

Aren't you guys lucky? Three chapters in a 24 hour period! I hope you guys enjoy this one!

And DiceRox09, thank you for your reviews. I hope you stick to see what will happen next! As I say to all my readers! Thanks for reading! ^_^


	10. Dave's Request

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Thank you to Girl4Christ15, Dhanvantarie, DiceRox09, and PurpleFox93 for your reviews! In case you couldn't tell, they really make me want to keep writing! I have started chapter 11, and hope to have it out either tonight or tomorrow. So don't worry! ^_^

Chapter Ten

Dave's Request

Theodore weaved his way carefully through traffic. His teachers had let him out early, after he explained what happened to his father. They were all sympathetic, and told him to let him if there was anything they could do. He appreciated it.

Theodore kept a close eye on traffic. It wouldn't do to have another car accident in the Seville family. _I can't wait to get to the hospital, though_, he thought. Ever since Miss Miller's call that morning, all he wanted was to be at the hospital to see Dave. _Please be awake when I get there,_ he thought. _Please._

Traffic seemed to take forever that day. It felt like everyone was driving a snail's pace, and there was nothing Theodore could do about it. He kept taking deep breaths. He thought about Jeanette. Talking to her had helped him a lot that morning. _I'm so glad I have her_, he thought. He forced himself _not_ to think of the past, even though it completely defined his present, as it did with all six of them, though Theodore didn't know it. But he couldn't afford to think of it at that time. All he could focus on was getting to Dave.

Finally, Theodore reached the hospital. He parked, and practically ran into the hospital. He hurried through the hallways, and stopped short in the doorway to Dave's hospital room.

The television was on in there, and Dave had his eyes open watching it. Theodore paused at the doorway, just glad to see him. He must have made some noise though, because Dave turned to look at the doorway and smiled.

"Hey Theodore," Dave said.

"Hi Dave," Theodore said, stepping into the room. "How are you doing?" He indicated the machines and instruments surrounding Dave.

Dave shrugged. "As well as can be expected. I can't really complain, though…except maybe about the food. I could really go for a slice of pizza." He shook his head. "I think I've been spoiled by your cooking. The slop they serve here is scarcely edible, and yet is better than the crap I used to make."

Theodore smiled. "Well, maybe I can do something about that."

Dave smiled. "I would appreciate that."

"So when do the doctors say you'll be out of here?" Theodore asked.

Dave's smile shifted, and Theodore saw a shadow pass over his eyes. He laughed. "You know doctors. They want to take as much of your money as they can."

"So how do they say you're doing?" Theodore persisted.

"They won't tell me much of anything, and what they do tell me, only Simon and Jeanette could understand," Dave said.

"Well, did you see Alvin? He came to see you last night," Theodore said.

"Yes I did. Thank you for calling him," Dave said.

"No problem. I thought he would want to know," Theodore said. "I tried calling Simon, but he wouldn't answer his phone."

"Yes, well, you know how busy he's always been with school," Dave tried to laugh it off, but Theodore saw the pain.

"Could you call him?" Theodore asked.

Dave shook his head. "They won't let me use a phone. Say it constitutes as 'too much activity.' Besides, my cell phone was trashed in the accident." Dave sighed. "So now the only thing I can do is watch television."

"Well, it makes for a nice vacation," Theodore offered. "I didn't know you were so desperate for one, you had to get into an accident!"

The two of them laughed, but they were forced laughs, as both of them knew things could have been much worse, and that they didn't know just how bad everything was.

"So is there anything I can get for you? Is there anything you need?" Theodore asked.

Dave opened his mouth to say something, but then stopped. He looked away from Theodore.

"What?" Theodore asked.

"What what?" Dave said, keeping his face away from Theodore's.

"You were going to say something," Theodore pointed out.

Dave shrugged. "I changed my mind."

"About what? Tell me?" Theodore asked.

"Never mind, Theodore," Dave shook his head.

"Dave, whatever it is, if it's in my power, I'll get it for you. I promise!" Theodore insisted.

Dave finally looked back into Theodore's earnest green eyes. He sighed and closed his eyes.

"What I really want, Theodore, is to have my family around me right now. I really need what's left of my family. This is leaving me lots of time to think, and since my parents died while you were in high school, I really only need you guys…and the Chipettes," Dave explained. "What I want most is to have my family in the same room together, all six of them, Chipmunks and Chipettes." Dave paused. "I'm sorry, Theodore, I know that's an impossible request. Just forget it."

Theodore fell silent. He was shocked, but at the same time, not surprised by Dave's request. Dave had helped to raise the Chipettes just as Miss Miller had helped to raise the Chipmunks. In a sense, they were a family…even if it had been estranged for about three years. Theodore looked at how lost Dave looked. Then his eyes flicked to the bandage wrapped around Dave's head. Dr. Standish had talked about being far more worried about the head injury than anything, and he knew she was more worried about it than she told him. Even though Dave had awakened, it didn't mean that he was okay or out of the woods yet. _What if something happens to him? _he wondered. _Something worse. And the others weren't around…and didn't get a chance to say good-bye._ Theodore's eyes filled with tears, though he was careful to make sure that Dave didn't see. In that moment, he made a decision.

"Dave?" he said.

"Yes Theodore?"

"If it's the last thing I do, I will get everyone home to you," Theodore promised. "Alvin, Jeanette, Eleanor, even Brittany and Simon. I will make sure you get your entire family in one room together."

Dave paused. "Are you sure?"

Theodore nodded. "I promise you, Dave. I will make it happen."

"Thank you, Theodore," Dave said simply.

Then the conversation turned to other, less serious topics. _What in the world have I promised to do?_ his mind demanded. He felt his resolve waver for a minute, but then he remembered the look on Dave's face when he promised. His resolve strengthened. _Somehow, some way, I __**will**__ do this_, he swore to himself. _Dave deserves this._

The two of them talked about all sorts of nonsensical things, until the nurses came in and shooed Theodore out, telling him that Dave needed his rest.

"I'll come back later, Dave," Theodore said.

"And bring a pizza!" Dave said.

"It's a promise," Theodore laughed. "A homemade pizza!"

"It's a deal," Dave said. "I'll hold you to it."

"Bye Dave," Theodore said.

Dave waved to him.

Theodore looked back until he couldn't see anymore. He shook his head and reached for his phone.


	11. Calling All Chipmunks

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Happy New Year! And as a New Year's gift: chapter 11! Special thanks to PurpleFox93, Girl4Christ15, autumnamberleaves, DiceRox09, and chipmunkandchipettelover for reviewing! ^_^

Chapter Eleven

Calling All Chipmunks

The youngest of the three Chipmunks walked out of the hospital with a determined look on his face, a look more commonly seen on his more rambunctious older brother. He talked on his cell phone in a voice full of desperation and a little anger.

"Simon, it's an emergency! I know you don't want to talk to me, but you need to think of Dave! You're brilliant! Would I start calling you out of the blue for nothing?" Theodore insisted to the voicemail. "I really hope you get one of my messages, and get home as soon as you can."

Theodore hung up the phone, his heart full of discouragement. _This isn't going to be easy_, he thought._ Try impossible. But then, I knew that going into it._

He dialed his other brother's number.

"This is Alvin. Talk to me," Alvin said, answering his phone after two rings.

"Alvin, it's Theodore," Theodore said.

"Theodore. What's wrong? Dave isn't worse is he? Do I need to get back to the hospital?" Alvin demanded.

"No, nothing like that, Alvin," Theodore said. "There's been no other changes, other than him waking up, as far as I know."

"Then what are you calling me for?" Alvin asked rudely.

Theodore took a deep breath. "Dave made a request from me, and I promised I would get it for him."

"Well, what is it?"

"He wants the Chipmunks and the Chipettes together in the same room," Theodore said, bracing himself for Alvin's response.

"WHAT?!" Alvin exclaimed. "And you promised to get it for him?! Theodore, have you lost your mind?! We haven't been in the same room together since we graduated high school! It's how all of us wanted it, and it's been nice not having to see anyone else, especially the two brainy traitors and the stuck-up bitch! Theodore, how could you?!"

"Alvin, what if something happens to Dave? I don't know everything that's wrong with him, and neither do the doctors! What if something happens, and the others don't get a chance to say good-bye?" Theodore pleaded.

"Not my problem. Three of them left. It was their choice, and good riddance! It's their own damn fault if they aren't here!" Alvin snapped.

Theodore sighed. "Alvin, please. I need you to do something for Dave."

There was a short pause. "What?" Alvin asked suspiciously.

"I need you to call Simon," Theodore said right before Alvin erupted.

"HELL NO! Never! I swore two years ago I would never talk to him again, and I haven't broken that vow! I will NOT call him!" Alvin shouted into the phone. Theodore had to pull the phone away from his ear.

"Please, Alvin! If Simon sees _you_ calling, he might figure out that there's an emergency out here! I don't think he's listening to my messages! Please, Alvin. Please. Do it for Dave," Theodore begged.

"Theodore, I'm sorry. But I won't do it. _You_ made that promise to Dave; now it's up to you to see it happens. If, _IF, _you can get the rest of them out here, I will promise to behave myself. But that's as far as it goes," Alvin said. "Otherwise, this is your game." Alvin paused. "I've got to go. Let me know if anything changes with Dave, okay?"

"Okay, Alvin," Theodore said, resigned.

"Bye," Alvin said then hung up.

Theodore hung his head in despair. He walked over to his car. _What am I going to do next?_ He leaned against his car door. _How am I going to get Simon here?_ The rest of them were going to be easy compared to Simon. _With the possible exception of Brittany, _he thought. His eyes roamed over the parking lot, and landed on a license plate for New York State. It had a Columbia University frame surrounding it. Theodore froze, his eyes widening. _Columbia University!_ he thought. _Jeanette goes there! It's within driving distance of Cornell University, where Simon is._ His heart began pounding, with hope. _Can I ask this of Jeanette?_

He began thinking about how everything had fallen. _All of us were to blame for that,_ he thought. _But…_he thought about what happened between Jeanette and Simon. _Jeanette was the innocent victim there._ The main reason why things had never cleared up between them was because Eleanor had told Simon to never go near her sister again. _But,_ he thought, _was that the only reason?_

Theodore knew how Simon had felt about Jeanette, for years. _Did all of that really go away?_ Theodore wondered. _If he's anything like me, it didn't._

After running through all of his memories, Theodore came to the conclusion that Jeanette was his best, and indeed, his only hope to get Simon home, as Dave wanted.

He dialed Jeanette's number. The phone rang only once.

"Theodore? Is everything okay?" Jeanette asked.

"Yeah, everything's status quo right now," he said. "I got to see Dave."

"And how's he doing?" she queried.

"As good as can be expected, I guess. As far as I know, nothing worse has happened," he said, sighing.

"But?" she prompted.

"He made a request, and I promised to fulfill it," he said.

"What kind of request?" she asked.

"It's kind of why I called you, Jeanette," he began. "The one thing Dave wants above all is his family together in the same room."

"Oh," she said.

"And he means his entire family, Chipmunks and Chipettes," Theodore said hesitantly.

Jeanette paused. Theodore could almost see her blinking in astonishment.

"When do you want me to be there?" she said.

Theodore smiled. _Finally, one victory_.

"As soon as you can, Jeanette," he said.

"I'll be on the next flight out," she committed.

"I would love that, but I need you to do something else," he said. "And it's going to be really hard, but I think you're the only one who will succeed."

She paused again. "What do you want me to do?"

"Do you remember what I said about Simon? About how I didn't think he was listening to my messages?" he began.

"Yeah?" she said.

"Well, I tried to get Alvin to call him, but that was a bust," he admitted. "And he needs to be here, Jeanette. Simon will hate himself forever when he finds out. And I don't want him to find out too late, on the off chance that things take a turn for the worse."

"I agree," Jeanette said. "So where do I come in?"

"How far is the drive from Columbia to Cornell, do you think?" he asked.

"Four to five hours, depending on traffic," she answered.

"Jeanette, I know I have no right to ask you to do this, but I think you are the only one Simon won't turn directly away," Theodore said in a rush of words.

"Slow down, Theodore," Jeanette said. "You want me to drive to Cornell to see Simon?" She sighed. "Oh, I don't know, Theodore. Aside from when we've been in the public eye, we haven't talked since our last fight. God, he hurt me so much, and I couldn't approach him after that." Theodore heard the tears in her voice. "I don't know if I'm the best one to do this."

"But don't you see, Jeanette? That's why you're the _best_ person to do this," Theodore insisted. "Simon can hold onto his pride with the rest of us. Alvin and I are guilty of doing something to him, and he remembers that. But you? You didn't do anything worse than what he did, and you didn't do anything to him, but he did hurt you. I really don't think he'll turn you away. I think he'll listen to you. I really do, Jeanette."

"Theodore," she said, her voice unsure.

"Please, Jeanette. You're the only hope I have. The only other person I have to go to is Miss Miller, and I don't want to go to her. It'll feel like I tattled on Simon or something, and could make things worse. Please. I really think this will work," Theodore said.

There was a long pause on the other end. Then he heard Jeanette take a deep breath.

"I'll do it," she said in a small voice.

"You will?" Theodore exclaimed, delight in his voice.

"I will," Jeanette said, her voice strengthening with every voice. "Dave deserves to have his family around him. And Simon will hate himself if he finds out too late. As it is, he's probably going to hate himself when he finds out. I'll do what I can. Do you know where he's living?"

Theodore told her. He heard rustling noises that indicated she was writing it down.

"Thank you so much, Jeanette," he said. "I owe you big time."

"No, you don't, Theodore. One of us needs to get him home. And I'm closer geographically to him than you are," Jeanette said. "Um, I wanted to ask. What about my sisters? Have you called them yet?"

"No," he said. "I wasn't sure about that. I'm afraid I'll get the same reaction from Brittany than I'm getting from Simon, and I really don't know if I could call Eleanor."

"Don't worry about it, Theodore," Jeanette said. "I'll call them both. I think I'll get the same reaction from Brittany you will, but I think Eleanor will be able to get Brittany. And I know I can get Eleanor there."

"Thank you, Jeanette," he said. "I'm sorry I'm putting the hardest parts on you."

"That's okay, Theodore. I'm probably the best one to call my sisters. I just hope you're right about Simon's reaction toward me," she said.

_You and me both_, he thought, but didn't say. "So I'll see you soon then. Text or phone me your travel plans once you have them."

"I will. Give Dave my love," she said.

"I will," he told her. The two of them hung up.

Theodore's heart felt lighter. He honestly believed that Jeanette could get Simon here, and that she was the only one who could. He got into his car with a lighter step. _Dave, we'll all be together soon,_ he thought, staring up at the hospital window where Dave's room was. Then he started his car up, determined that he would return to the hospital later.


	12. I Must Be Brave

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Thank you to DiceRox09, THTfriends, autumnamberleaves, chipmunksnchipettes, Northgalus2002, and Dhanvantarie. Writers live off of reviews, and it's wonderful to keep getting them! So thank you!

Chapter Twelve

I Must be Brave

Jeanette took a deep breath after she got off the phone with Theodore. _This is going to be so hard,_ she thought. _First things first, though. Should I call Eleanor or Brittany first? _She thought there was a chance she would get the same reaction from Brittany that Theodore had received from Simon. _And I would deserve it. _Guilt swamped her. She shook her head. _There's no time for this!_ She sighed. _I'll leave the message first._

Jeanette sat down on her bed, pushing her homework to the side. Her hands shook as she dialed the number. Music began to play on the other end. It played for about a minute.

"You've reached the original Brittany! Leave your name and number, and the fabulous me will get back to you as soon as I'm able!" the voicemail said.

"Brittany, it's your sister. Jeanette," she began after the beep. "Um, I know you probably don't want to hear from me, but, um. I have something to tell you. Dave Seville was in a car accident. He's at Cedar Sinai hospital. He wants his family around him, so if you could get there as soon as you can, it would be great. Thank you."

Jeanette hung up the phone, still shaking. _I hope you get that, Brittany, _she thought.

"And now for the easier one," she said. _Though not too much easier._ She dialed Eleanor's number. As she did so, her roommate walked in. The perky blonde hummed to her Ipod. She took the headphones off.

"Hey Jeanette," she began, then saw that Jeanette was on the phone. "Sorry," she mouthed.

"Hey Anna," Jeanette mouthed, as the phone began to ring. It rang for about a minute, before voicemail picked up.

_She must be in class or something, _Jeanette thought.

"You have reached Ellie Miller. Please leave your name, number, and a brief message after the tone. Bye!" her voice said.

"Ellie, it's me, Jeanette. I'm calling because I have some important news to tell you. It's a bit of an emergency, so please call me back as soon as you can," Jeanette said, before she hung up.

"Ellie? Your sister, Ellie?" Anna asked, staring at Jeanette in surprise.

Jeanette looked up at her. "Yeah?"

"It's just that...you _never_ call your sister," Anna stated.

Jeanette shrugged. "Well, she would rather not hear from me."

Anna winced. "That's sad. What made you call her?"

"Well, you know how Dave was in a car accident?" Jeanette began. At Anna's nod, she continued. "Theodore just called me, and told me that the one thing Dave wants most is to have his family together—his whole family, and that includes my sisters and me."

"Wow," Anna said. "When was the last time the six of you were in the same room together?"

"Um," Jeanette began to think. "It was probably the party Miss Miller and Dave had for us when we graduated from high school."

"Whoa, that was a long time ago."

"Yeah. I don't know how we're going to do this, but we need to," Jeanette said. "And I need to ask you for your help, please."

"What do you need me to do?" Anna asked.

"I need you to drive me to Cornell University in Ithaca. I'll pay for your gas, to and from Cornell, but I need someone to drive me there," she said.

"What's at Cornell?" Anna said.

"It's not a what, but a who," Jeanette blushed and looked away. "Simon Seville."

"Of the Chipmunks? Simon Seville of the Chipmunks?" Anna squealed. "That Simon?"

Jeanette nodded. Anna squealed again and clapped her hands in delight.

"Oh my god! You need _me_ of all people to give you a ride to go see Simon Seville!" Anna said. "Of course, I'll give you a ride, if it means I get to meet him…I would love to meet any of the Chipmunks. God, they're awesome!"

Jeanette smiled at her reaction. _I didn't know you were a fan, _she thought. Anna blushed.

"Okay, okay, I'm a fan girl. I had such a crush on all three of them," Anna explained. "And I'm a huge fan of the Chipettes too. You guys were awesome. I always hoped that I would get to meet you, and it was great when we were assigned as roommates!"

Jeanette burst out laughing. _In two years, you never let on. You've got a lot of self-control, Anna! _"You never said you were a fan of the Chipettes or the Chipmunks, in all the years we've been roommates."

"I was playing it cool," Anna said. "Anyway, why would you need to go see Simon?"

Jeanette looked down at her hands, then the window, then finally at Anna.

"I'll only tell you if you can keep it a secret, Anna," Jeanette said. "And I mean it." Her voice was more determined than it had ever been. "It's partly to do with the break-ups of the two bands. And we don't want it in the public eye. That's why we've never talked about it."

"I understand," Anna said. "I promise you I won't tell anyone. I've always wondered about why you guys really broke up, because I'm only human. But I have also always thought that stars deserve their private lives."

Jeanette took a deep breath. "Well, as I'm sure you've figured out, none of us are really on speaking terms, except for Theodore and me."

Anna nodded. "I'd kind of figured that out."

"Theodore has tried to call Simon twice now, and can't get a hold of him," Jeanette said. "He thinks I'm the only one Simon won't turn away, but only if it's in person."

"That explains why you have to drive there," Anna said.

"Yeah, and then I'm taking a flight home," Jeanette said.

"All right. You've got yourself a ride," Anna agreed.

"Thank you, Anna!" Jeanette leapt off the bed to give her a hug.

"No problem. But what are you going to do about school?" Anna asked.

Jeanette bit her lip. "I'm not sure. I don't know how long I'll be gone."

"Well, why don't you just take the rest of the semester off? I'm sure you still could. And your advisor, Professor Walsh, would probably be happy to help you. Why don't you go see her now?" Anna said.

"That's a good idea, Anna. I'll do what I need to about school this afternoon, and then how about leaving early tomorrow morning for Cornell?" Jeanette asked.

"Sounds good to me," Anna said. "I always wanted to ditch classes for a good cause."

"Anna! You can't miss class!" Jeanette exclaimed.

Anna waved her hand. "Of course I can. I've never done it before. It'll be fun to do it once. Besides, it's doing one of my idols a favor, and allowing me a chance to meet another one of my idols. Either way, I win!"

Jeanette shook her head as she walked out the door. She felt much better about the whole thing. _By this time tomorrow, you'll be on your way home to California, _she thought. _Hopefully, with Simon. _A knot began growing in her stomach. _Oh, I hope you're right about this, Theodore._

She walked across campus, heading towards her advisor's office. She hoped Professor Walsh would understand her wanting to return home for a semester, and would be able to help her out.

_Okay, giving up the rest of the semester sucks,_ she thought. _But at least I'll be able to spend some time with Dave._ Jeanette knew she would hate it if she missed a single moment. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that Dave's injuries were much worse than they seemed. _Just hold on until we all get there, _she thought. Then she walked into her advisor's office.


	13. Sporty Girl Blues

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Wow! The response this fic is getting surprises me. I'm glad you guys are all so into it! I hope you enjoy this latest chapter!

This website seems to be having some bug problems I think, so I'll thank the reviewers of chapters 12 and 13 together in chapter 14, which I will start as soon as this is posted. Enjoy!

Chapter Thirteen

Sporty Girl Blues

The blonde chipmunk bounced out of class. Her hair was in its usual pigtails, which were easier to maintain than any other style after so many years of using the same one. 

_I hate that class, _she thought. _It's so boring. _Then she had to be fair._ The material isn't. But the teacher is!_

She felt a vibrating sensation coming from her bag. Her eyebrows furrowed. _That's odd,_ she thought. _Everyone who calls me normally does so after my classes are over. The only people who would call me are those who know my schedule.  
_

She looked at the phone. The words "VOICEMAIL: 1" were on the screen. Ellie pressed for the voicemail and put in her four-digit code. She almost fell over when she heard the voice on the other end.

"_Ellie, it's me, Jeanette. I'm calling because I have some important news to tell you. It's a bit of an emergency, so please call me back as soon as you can,_" Jeanette's voice said, sounding very worried.

_It must be an emergency! Jeanette __**never**__ calls me,_ Ellie thought, knowing it was her fault that her sister didn't call her. She had made her feelings perfectly clear three years ago. It wasn't Jeanette's fault that she didn't know how much Ellie regretted it.

Immediately, she called Jeanette back. The phone rang twice.

"Eleanor?" Jeanette answered the phone.

"I got your message, Jeanette. What kind of emergency?" she said.

"Dave's been in a car accident," Jeanette began.

"What?" she exclaimed, feeling like she'd been doused in ice water. "How is he? Is he okay?"

"Sort of," Jeanette said. "He has a sprained ankle, a smashed knee, and a broken arm."

"Oh my god!" Eleanor said.

"But that's not the worst, Eleanor. The worst is that he has a head injury," Jeanette said.

"How bad?" Eleanor gasped.

"I don't know. I don't think the doctors know yet either. Or they're just not telling Theodore," Jeanette said.

"Is he in a coma?" she asked.

"Oh no. He was unconscious, but he woke up during the night. Theodore called me right before I called you. There's nothing worse, but I don't think anyone knows just how bad it really is," Jeanette explained.

"Why didn't anyone call me?" Eleanor demanded.

"Well, it just happened yesterday. You know how Miss Miller is. She probably didn't think to call you. She didn't call me either. And Theodore probably didn't think you would take a call from him," Jeanette said.

_And he's probably right about that, isn't he? _her conscience asked her. _Shut up! _she thought.

"Well, thank you for telling me," Eleanor said to Jeanette. "Please keep me updated."

"I may not have to," Jeanette said.

"What? What do you mean?" she asked.

"I had another reason for calling you," Jeanette began. "Dave made a request of Theodore, a request Theodore promised to fulfill for him."

_Please stop saying that name_, Eleanor thought, her heart clenching. Aloud she said, "What sort of request?"

Jeanette swallowed hard. "What Dave wants most in the world is to have his family together in one room."

"His _whole _family?" Eleanor queried carefully.

"Yes, Ellie. His whole family. Chipmunks _and _Chipettes," Jeanette said.

Eleanor paused. "When are you leaving?" Even though they weren't close, she knew her sister well. _As soon as Jeanette heard the news, she probably booked the first flight out..._

"Tomorrow night, from Tompkins Regional Airport in Ithaca," she told her. "If all goes well, anyway."

"All goes well?" Eleanor asked. "What do you mean by that?"

She heard Jeanette sigh. "Someone has to go get Simon."

"WHAT?! And _you've_ been elected? Jeannie, are you sure that's such a good idea?" Eleanor asked.

An image popped into her head, of a red face covered in tears while a tall male chipmunk walked away. Eleanor had followed him. _Don't you ever come near my sister again, Simon Seville! Or else!_ Eleanor squirmed. _Well, he listened to you, didn't he? _He had never gone near Jeanette again, except for when he had to, during concerts and the scenes their characters had together in movies. Even during interviews, he made sure the other chipmunks sat between Jeanette and him.

"Eleanor, I have to. He's not taking Theodore's calls, and Alvin refuses to call him. Theodore doesn't want to ask Miss Miller to call because he's afraid it'll seem like tattling, and could make things worse!" Jeanette insisted.

_How much worse could things get?_ Eleanor thought, but didn't say. Jeanette, being Jeanette, would try to answer that question, even if it was only ever in her own head. _And you've done enough to hurt her_, her conscience snapped. Eleanor winced. _Enough about the past._ She focused on the conversation at hand.

"All right, Jeanette. But be careful," she said. Then she thought about her other sister. "What about Brittany? Have you called her yet?"

"Yes, when I called you. But I had to leave her a message too. I just hope she got it," Jeanette said.

"Well, you know how busy she is, if you've kept up with her career," Eleanor said, then realized how harsh that sounded. _Oh no!_

"Of course I have! But most of what I know is what the tabloids say about her," Jeanette said, her voice hurt. "And what I can get from Miss Miller."

Eleanor felt guilty at the tone in her sister's voice. _Oh Jeanette._ Out loud, she said, "Miss Miller says most of the stories about her partying is true. She was probably either busy with doing something for her career or she was hung-over from a party."

Jeanette sighed. "Do you think she'll be there, even when she finds out?"

"Oh, she'll be there, Jeanette. I promise you, come hell or high water, Brittany will join the rest of us," Eleanor said.

"Us?" Jeanette said. "So you're going home too?"

"Of course I am! I love Dave as much as you do," Eleanor began, then whirled around as someone touched her shoulder. She smiled at the male chipmunk looking back at her. She put her pointer finger up, to indicate that he wait a minute. He nodded. "I'll be home as soon as I can get a flight out."

"How long do you think you'll stay?" Jeanette asked.

"How long are you planning on staying?" Eleanor questioned.

"Until the beginning of next semester. My advisor helped me withdraw from this semester. I want to spend as much time with Dave as I possibly can," Jeanette told her.

"Well, I don't know if I want to take that much time away from school," Eleanor said. _But there again, school is even more important to you than it is to me._

"I understand," Jeanette said, disappointment in her voice. The disappointment rubbed Eleanor's already active conscience even more. She paused for a moment, thinking about the implications of what Jeanette was asking. Eleanor sighed.

"I'll have to talk to my coach. I'll see how much time I can get off, okay?" Eleanor said.

"All right, Ellie. I guess I'll see you in the hospital," Jeanette said.

"See you then," Eleanor said. The two of them hung up.

"What was that all about?" the chipmunk asked.

"Hi Chip," Ellie said, kissing him quickly. "The man who has been like a father to me was in a car accident. I really need to go home as soon as possible."

"Oh, Ellie, I'm sorry. Is there anything you need?" Chip asked.

Ellie sighed. _Nothing you can give, _she thought, thinking about a pair of sweet green eyes. She shook her head, and looked his kind gray eyes.

"Unfortunately, no. I just need to go talk to Coach Porter, and see what options I have," Ellie said. "I need to go to his office. But thanks. I'll see you later." She walked away, feeling uncomfortable. _You're really not treating him very well, _her conscience nagged. _I know_, she thought back. For the past week or so, she had felt more and more distance growing between them. She didn't understand why. Chip was a really great guy. But, for some reason, their relationship just wasn't working. Eleanor shook her head. _That's a problem for a later date. _She began thinking about Dave. _I hope Dave will be okay. _She thought about his request. _It doesn't surprise me that he wants us all back together again. _Eleanor winced, thinking about Alvin and Brittany being in the same building together, much less the same room. _Speaking of Brittany, _Eleanor thought, dialing a number on her phone.

"Leslie Smith speaking," the voice said.

"Hey Leslie! It's Ellie Miller," she said.

"Oh hey Ellie! How are you doing?" Leslie asked.

"Okay. I just had some really bad news, and it involves Brittany. What are her plans for the next few days?" Ellie asked.

"Well, she had an interview this morning. She's at a photo-shoot right now," Leslie began then sighed.

"And then she's going to a party after," Ellie stated, rolling her eyes.

"Exactly. And she's planning on partying twice as hard tonight, because Dave wouldn't let her party last night. By the way, what's going on with Dave? He was supposed to be at her interview and is supposed to be at the photo-shoot right now, but he hasn't shown up to either, and he hasn't called. Have you heard anything?" Leslie asked.

"Um, Leslie, Dave was in a car accident yesterday," she said. Leslie gasped. Ellie continued. "I just found out myself. He's at Cedar Sinai."

"Oh my god! Is he okay?" Leslie asked.

"I think so. For now at least. Could you tell my sister?" she requested.

"Certainly. I'll tell her as soon as the shoot's over," Leslie agreed. "But I don't think she'll go see him."

"Oh, she will," Eleanor said, with steel in her voice. "What does her day look like for tomorrow?"

"Just resting and partying," Leslie said, sighing. "She seems to be getting worse."

Eleanor hesitated. "If I tell you something, will you promise not to tell Brittany? I know she's your boss, but…"

"Ellie, you're the one who found me for your sister, so that someone would be watching out for your sister. My loyalty is to you," Leslie declared.

Ellie sighed. "Dave made a request of one of his sons, Leslie. He wants his whole family home, and that includes the Chipettes."

"All six of you in one room together?" Leslie said. "I don't think that's such a good idea. Your sister's eyes turn to fire whenever she hears Alvin's name. I don't think it will work."

"It will," Ellie said. "What Dave wants, Dave will get. Just don't tell her. I will take care of it, okay?"

"Okay," Leslie said, then muffled noises came from the other end of the phone.

"Who are you talking to, Leslie?" Ellie heard her sister's voice on the other end.

"Oh, no one," Leslie said to Brittany. To Ellie, she said, "I'll talk to you later." Then she hung up, as she and Ellie had long ago planned. Brittany could never, _ever_ know that Leslie Smith was a friend of Eleanor's. Miss Miller and Dave had planted the idea of having an assistant in Brittany's head, and Eleanor was the one who found the perfect candidate. Eleanor wanted someone who would be her eyes and ears on her sister, someone who would call her if Brittany ever got in over her head. Brittany would be madder than hell if she ever found out about it, but that was a risk Eleanor was willing to take. Brittany needed someone to keep an eye on her, and if she wouldn't allow her sisters around…_With good reason, Eleanor,_ her conscience pointed out. _Or what she sees as good reason_, Eleanor argued. _It amounts to the same thing, _her conscience returned.

Eleanor sighed. She hoped she was doing the right thing. She knew she was doing the only thing she could, though. Dave had been so good to all of them over the years that he deserved to have the people he loved around him. _I just hope I'm not starting World War III by doing this._ In the back of her mind, she already had a plan to get Brittany to the hospital. She winced, thinking about how difficult her oldest sister was going to make it. _By god, though, this is going to work_, she thought.

She shook her head at what her other sister was going to do. _Jeanette's braver than I am,_ she thought. Eleanor remembered a pair of wounded green eyes. _I can't you believe you didn't tell me, but you let it slip to Alvin! To ALVIN, of all people! I never want to see you again!_ The words echoed through her brain. She flushed with shame. _Really, were you any better than Simon? _Her conscience was ruthless today. But this time, she couldn't argue. She had no excuse, other than the pain and betrayal she had felt at the time. Taking it out on Theodore was easier than dealing with the fact that one of her sisters had kept a secret from her…but she'd shared it with someone else.

_Simon, you'd better not hurt my sister this time, or I'll kick your ass!_ She sent the thought out into the world. Deep down inside, though, her heart knew better. Knew that what Simon wanted more than anything else was a chance to make things right…just as she did. _Just as, I'm sure, we all do…even Alvin and Brittany._

Finally, Eleanor reached her coach's office. She knocked on the door, and walked in.


	14. She's Like the Wind

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Thank you to Dhanvantarie, DiceRox09, Northgalus2002, and autumnamberleaves! I appreciate your reviews so much! I truly hope this fic ends up living to your expectations! ^_^; I planned it all out in advance. Enjoy!

By the way, this chapter happens to be the longest one yet! So have fun! ^_^

Chapter Fourteen

She's Like the Wind

The tall chipmunk rubbed his blue-gray eyes from under his glasses. He stretched his blue-clad arms and yawned. _I really should go to lunch soon_, he thought. He briefly stood up and stretched his jean-clad legs. One of his classes had been canceled, so he decided to get an early start on his homework that weekend.

"I can't believe you're doing homework on a Friday afternoon," his roommate said from his perch in front of the television.

He shrugged. "I don't really have anything better to do."

"You could have," Mike pointed out, while moving his controller in his hands. "That Lisa girl was hot, man. You could go to that film festival with her."

"I'm not interested," Simon snapped.

"You haven't been interested in much in the past few days. And you've been cranky lately. What's gotten into you?" Mike demanded. "You've been biting my head off every two seconds, ever since you got that call you cut off. Who was it anyway?"

"Wrong number," Simon said flatly. _Why did he have to start calling me out of the blue for anyway?_ Simon could not believe Theodore had tried calling him three times. Of course, he had immediately deleted those messages. Every time he heard any of his siblings' voices, it just brought back memories that Simon desperately just wanted to forget. 

_And how's that working out for you?_ a sly voice in the back of his mind asked. Simon sighed as he slammed his book shut. Deep down inside he knew those memories were easy to reach for. They returned to his consciousness very easily. They defined his reality. He wished it were otherwise, but in many ways, he still existed there, during the time when secrets had come out, hurtful words had been thrown like daggerse, and betrayals were felt by all.

_My, these are lovely thoughts today, _he thought ironically. _And that's why I don't ever want to hear from any of them __**ever**__ again. It hurts too damn much._

A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts. _Thank god, _he thought. He didn't go answer it, though. It was always for Mike, who was the more social of the two of them. _I'm here to get an education. And that's it._ Instead he grabbed another one of his textbooks while Mike opened the door.

"Hey," Mike said teasingly. "I don't know you."

Whoever it was laughed nervously…a laugh that made Simon freeze, his heart pounding in his chest. _It can't be,_ he thought.

"Um, is this Simon Seville's room?" she asked.

"Well, that depends. Why do you want Simon Seville?" Mike asked suspiciously.

_Say what you will about him,_ Simon thought, _but he always has my back._ Another reason why Mike usually answered the door was to keep Simon from being bothered by psycho fans who tracked him down. _Unfortunately, this time, it isn't a fan, _he thought. _But oh, how much you wish she still were your number one fan, don't you?_ the sly voice returned.

"I have news from home for him," she said. "My name is Jeanette Miller."

"Jeanette Miller? THE Jeanette Miller?" Mike exclaimed. "Of the Chipettes? Come on in!"

Simon felt rooted to the spot, his blue gray eyes staring towards the doorway. Mike stepped aside, to reveal the one and only woman who could make Simon's heart melt.

_She's returned to her old style,_ he thought,_ except for the pony tail._ She wore a wrinkled purple tank top, jeans, and sandals. Several brown strands had slipped out of her pony tail to fall around her face. Her hands nervously adjusted the purple frames around the most beautiful pair of green eyes Simon had ever seen.

"Hi Simon," she said shyly, not being able to look at him.

Simon swallowed. Hard. _What is she doing here?_ He tried not to think about the last time he had been in the same room with her. He knew he should stop staring at her, but he couldn't make himself stop drinking her in.

Mike finally cleared his throat, and Simon shook himself out of his reverie.

"Hello Jeanette," he said in a deeper tone than he normally used. His roommate looked amused. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"Um," she said, looking at Mike, then at him. "Can I talk to you alone?"

Mike looked from Jeanette to Simon. He shrugged. "I'll just pretend I have something else to do. I'll see you later, Simon." He turned the TV off and left the room.

"Your roommate seems nice," Jeanette said.

Simon shrugged. "He's okay. I've kept the same one for the past two years."

Jeanette nodded. "Me too. Mine's really great."

"Cool," he said. "I heard you got into Columbia. Um, belated congratulations on that."

"You too, for getting into Cornell," she said. "How has it been?"

"It's been good. I've enjoyed it," he said. "You?"

"Columbia's nice. I really like most of my professors," she said.

Finally, Simon got tired of all the small talk. His heart felt like it was being squeezed through a vice.

"Jeanette, what are you doing here?" he repeated.

She sighed. "First, you need to sit down."

_Why? _he thought, but didn't ask. He knew that look on her face meant serious business. Simon sat down on the bed. She turned her back, and pulled the chair Mike had been using to play his video games over, so she could sit while looking at Simon.

"Now, I know this is a lot to ask of you, but I really need you just to listen, okay? Please don't interrupt. And don't hate yourself either, please," she asked.

_Hate myself? Why would I hate myself?_ Simon began to get a very bad feeling about those phone calls from Theodore.

"I'll listen," he said.

"Simon, two days ago, Dave was in a car accident," Jeanette told him. Simon jumped up, his mouth opened into a wide 'O'. Jeanette stood up as well, and pushed him back down into a sitting position. In spite of the news he had just been given, Simon's body responded to her proximity and her scent. In that moment, all he wanted to lose himself in her. _But you have no right to it,_ the voice told him sternly. _Now you know why your brother was trying to get a hold of you. And what if the worst happened?_ The vice around his heart squeezed tighter. _Please be okay, Dave, _he begged.

"I-i-is he okay?" Simon croaked, his voice wavering.

Jeanette remained standing in front of him, her hand on his.

"He's okay, Simon. He's in the hospital, though," she said.

"What are his injuries?"

"Sprained ankle, smashed knee, and broken arm. But his worst injury and the one they don't the extent of yet is his head injury," Jeanette explained.

_Head injury?!?! No!_ his mind screamed at him. _And I didn't know! I didn't know!_ Simon's heart filled with guilt, while his eyes filled with tears.

"There's more, Simon," Jeanette said quietly.

"More?" he asked, staring at her, seeing the torment in his heart reflected in her eyes.

"Dave made a request of Theodore, Simon. Dave wants all of us, all six of us, home with him again," Jeanette said. She swallowed hard. "I have booked both of us on a flight that leaves at 5:00 from Tompkins Regional Airport."

Simon froze from shock. _Even after everything I've done, you still had enough faith in me to book me on the same flight as you?_

He checked the time. 12:00 p.m.

"Why such a late flight?" he asked.

"Well, I wasn't sure what your schedule was. I also thought you might want some time to figure out what to do about your classes. I'm staying until the beginning of next semester. Eleanor's going to try to take some time off school as well. I thought you might want time to think about it," Jeanette told him.

Simon's heart melted at her thoughtfulness. _Stay away! You hurt everyone you love!_ the sly voice told him. He paused. _You're right_, he unhappily told that voice.

"So are you coming with me?" she asked.

He smiled sadly. "Of course I am. And I think I'll do the same thing you're doing: take the rest of the semester off."

The shy smile he received from her made his palms sweat and his heart pound harder.

"Thank you, Simon. Dave deserves this!" she exclaimed.

He nodded. "Yes he does." His heart squeezed. _Dave deserves better than a son like me,_ he thought. _But if Dave wants me there, I will be there._

"Well, I think I'll leave you to get packed. Can you give me your number, so I can get a hold of you later?" she asked.

"Of course," he said, scrambling to find his phone. "And you give me yours as well. I'll call you when I'm ready to go."

They exchanged numbers.

"Great. Thanks Simon," Jeanette said.

"Um, Jeanette, who is going to take us to the airport?" he asked.

"My roommate, Anna. She was nice enough to drive me all the way here from Columbia," she said.

_You drove all the way out here? Just to get me? Dave must mean more to you than I thought he did,_ Simon thought.

"Wow. She must be some roommate," he said.

"She is," Jeanette smiled. "Well, I'd better get out of your way. I'll see you later, Simon."

She headed for the door.

"Jeanette wait!" burst out of Simon.

She quickly turned back. Simon stood there, staring at her. _Why did I do that? _he asked himself.

"Never mind," he said.

Jeanette's green eyes showed disappointment for a moment. _Or are you just seeing what you want to see? _the sly voice said. _Probably just seeing what I want to see,_ he thought. He watched her leave.

He scrambled to get his stuff packed. Mike returned while he was in the middle of it.

"Wow. That Jeanette must be some kind of chick," he said.

"This isn't what you think, Mike," Simon began. _Isn't it?_ the sly voice asked. He shook his head. "My dad was in a car accident two days ago. I need to go home."

"Oh man, I'm sorry. Is that what she came here to tell you?" Mike asked.

"Yeah," Simon said, continuing to put his clothes into his suitcase.

"Well, why didn't your brothers call you? I'm sure they have the number," Mike said, ready to get defensive on Simon's behalf.

Simon sighed. "One of them did try to call me." He hung his head with shame. "I just erased the messages."

"Oh," Mike said, then cleared his throat. "So what are you going to do about school?"

"I'm going to go talk to the office right now. I'll withdraw from my classes for this semester, and return next semester," Simon told him, finishing up packing.

Simon busied himself for the next couple hours doing exactly as he said. He had a little trouble with withdrawing from his classes, but since he was one of the best students in the school, they helped him out. Soon, he was free from his classes for the next few months.

He walked back to his dorm, and grabbed his suitcase. His hands shook as he dialed Jeanette's number.

"Hello?" she asked as soon as it rang.

"Jeanette? I'm ready to go," he told her.

"All right," she said, then told him where she was.

He walked out to the parking lot where she was. She stood next to a small white compact car. A petite blonde, shorter than Jeanette, stood next to her. She popped the trunk.

"Hi, I'm Anna. I'm Jeanette's roommate and a huge fan of you both. I will also be your chauffer for the afternoon," she said, shaking his hand.

"So I take it you already know who I am," he said, laughing at her introduction.

She gave him an are-you-kidding-me look. "Of course I know who you are! Simon Seville isn't exactly a common name. And I doubt Jeanette Miller, previously of the Chipettes, would seriously want to come and get any old Simon Seville. There was only one she was ever linked to, you know," Anna said.

Simon sneaked a look at Jeanette, whose cheeks were red. Simon felt his heart lighten a little at the look at her face.

"Is that everything?" Anna asked.

"Y-yeah," Simon said, distractedly.

Anna slammed the trunk down. "Well, kids, let's get this show on the road!"

They all piled into the car. Simon sat in the back. _After all, this is her roommate's car_, he thought. _Let's just forget that you can now stare at Jeanette all you want without her noticing,_ the sly voice said. He swallowed hard.

"This was really nice of you, Anna. To drive all the way out here," he said.

Anna shrugged. "Hey, it was for a good cause. I hope your dad's okay."

"Me too," he said, nodding.

"Besides, BONUS! I get to meet Simon of Alvin and the Chipmunks. I'd drive twice as far for _that _particular privilege," she said teasingly.

Simon warmed to Anna quickly.

"So how long have you two been roommates?" he asked.

"Since freshman year," Jeanette said.

"I took one look at that shy face, and knew _someone_ had to protect her from the big bad wolves of the world. So I elected myself," Anna said. "It's why we've been roommates ever since."

"Anna!" Jeanette said, blushing.

Simon found himself thanking the universe that Jeanette had been given like Anna as a roommate. _Because she really does need protecting, _he thought. He remembered all the times she would manage to trip over her own feet, make messes, and bump into things, simply by being in her own world. _Things were okay when she had her sisters, and my brothers around_, he thought. _But then, you just had to go and mess it up, didn't you? _the sly voice that he commonly called "Guilt" spoke again. Simon squirmed, and found himself unable to speak again.

_Dave,_ he thought. _I hope you're okay. _His mind tormented him with images of finding out about Dave's accident months later, after a funeral, and being unable to say good-bye. _Dave!_ his heart cried out. He sniffled, not noticing the tears starting to fall from his eyes. He squeezed his eyes closed. A tissue pressed against his face. He opened his eyes in surprise.

Jeanette had turned around in her seat, and wiped the tears from his face.

"It's okay, Simon. You didn't know," she said.

_How can she forgive me? How can she think so well of me after what I did?_ he thought. The tears came faster.

"Go ahead and cry, Simon. He's your dad. Go ahead and cry," she said, crawling into the back next to him. She put her arms around him, and he cried against her shoulder all the way to the airport.


	15. First Day of Reckoning

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later. But all the OC's in this fic belong to me, for all the good they do me. ~_^

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:  
Thank you to PurpleFox93, Northgalus2002, autumnamberleaves, Girl4Christ15, chipmunksnchipettes, and DiceRox09, for your reviews! ^_^ Enjoy!

Chapter Fifteen

First Day of Reckoning

The youngest member of the Seville family nervously tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. A part of him couldn't believe he was sitting at the airport, waiting to pick up not just one person, but two. He was still in shock from the phone call he had received earlier that day.

_"Theodore, it's Jeanette. I'm calling to tell you that I have a flight out at 5:00 this afternoon, and I won't be coming alone. Simon agreed to come with me," Jeanette told him._

_Theodore felt like jumping up and down._ "_I knew you could do it, Jeanette! I just knew it!"_

_"I didn't know that I could. I don't know how you knew that he would come with me," Jeanette said._

_"Because he's my brother, and if he's anything like the rest of us, he couldn't have changed that much," Theodore told her, but felt like he couldn't explain further. He changed the subject instead. "What about your sisters?"_

"_Well, I couldn't get in touch with Brittany, but Eleanor is going to fly in as soon as she's able to," Jeanette said. "I think she has a plan to get Brittany to the hospital. What about Alvin?"_

_"Alvin promised me he would behave himself if I got everyone into town," Theodore said._

_Jeanette sighed. "Why don't I think he's going to be able to keep that promise?"_

_"Because it's **Alvin** we're talking about. If it makes you feel any better, I don't think he will either. I think he only said it because he thought it would be impossible for me to get anyone else here, except for maybe you," Theodore said. "We'll just have to take it one minute at a time."_

_"I agree. Jeez, he really underestimated how much all of us love Dave, didn't he? Oh! My other line's ringing. It's Simon. I'll call you when we're about to leave, okay?" Jeanette said._

Theodore walked in a fog for the rest of the day. He had gone to the hospital, but decided not to tell Dave yet that he was getting everyone into town. For one thing, he didn't want to get his hopes up. There was always a chance that someone would chicken out, and leave. For another, he wasn't sure about whether or not anyone could actually get Brittany there. _I hope everything works out,_ he thought.

A few hours later, he received another call from Jeanette.

_"Our flight will be leaving here soon," she said. "I just thought I'd call you and let you know."_

_"Okay. I'll pick you up. Just call me when your plane lands," Theodore said. He paused, then asked the question he desperately wanted to know the answer to. "How is he?"_

_"Oh, Theodore, he's tearing himself up with guilt, and I don't think it's just not getting your messages. I think guilt's been eating him up for a long time, and this just made things worse," Jeanette sounded tearful. "And I know I should keep my distance, after everything that happened, and all the time that's passed, but I can't. I just _**_can't_**_."_

Theodore understood completely. _If it were Eleanor_, he thought...Jeanette was the only one who knew for a fact what his feelings for her younger sister were. And he was the only one who knew what her feelings for that particular brother were. _Even after all this time, _he thought._Of course, she's only dated one person in three years…pretty much in her whole life. Does that make her more loyal than I am?_ he wondered.

_She continued, in a quiet voice. "He cried the whole way to the airport, Theodore. I couldn't let him alone."_

_"So you comforted him," Theodore guessed. "I'm glad, Jeanette. I think that's what the main problem has been with all of them. Dealing with everything alone." _

_"And not forgiving themselves or anyone else," Jeanette added._

_A thought created a panic in Theodore. "He didn't hear you tell me that, did he?"_

_"No," Jeanette said. "We're taking turns going to the rest room, so one of us can watch our carry-on bags. Neither one of us wanted to drag them into the stall with us."_

_Theodore breathed a sigh of relief, glad his brother wouldn't feel embarrassed seeing him again, in addition to whatever else he might be feeling._

Theodore sighed, still tapping on the steering wheel. _Have I forgiven Simon's part in the whole mess?_ he wondered. He supposed he had. After all, Simon's original part in the mess was no worse than Jeanette's, and he had long ago forgiven Jeanette. _There again, Jeanette hasn't spent the last three years ignoring my existence, _he thought. But there was a part of him that desperately wanted things back the way they were. He wanted his brothers back...and he wanted his friendships back with the Chipettes. _After all, they are the only ones who can relate to our past._ Theodore shook his head. _I may as well wish for the moon. I'd be more likely to get it._

As the time drew closer to seeing the brother who hadn't spoken to him at all in two years, and not outside of interviews, concerts, or the scenes in that final movie in the year before that, Theodore found himself getting jumpier. A thousand thoughts went through his brain. _What is going to happen?_ _Will Simon be civil? Will Alvin and Simon behave themselves? _He wanted to hope for the best, he really did. But experience had taught him opposite. After all, he had tried to patch things up with Simon the previous year, hoping that a year away from home may have softened Simon's heart. But it hadn't. In fact, being away from home seemed to have made Simon worse.

_Then again, he did agree to come with Jeanette. I honestly believe he still has the same feelings for her that he always did,_ Theodore thought. He knew, from asking Dave, that Simon had not dated anyone since college. As a matter of fact, after elementary school, Simon had never dated anyone, because he had figured out that his heart belonged to Jeanette. _I wonder if things would have been different if the two of them had really been a couple at the time, _Theodore thought. Jeanette and Simon had talked about getting together during their freshman year of high school, and both had decided they really didn't have time for dating. They were taking higher level classes than their siblings; they were trying to be in various clubs; they had performances and obligations as members of the Chipmunks and the Chipettes. They really didn't have time for a relationship. But every time they needed a date for anything, like school dances or red carpet events, they always, _always_, went with each other.

"We're the ones on the run, we're the girls, we're the diamond dolls," suddenly began singing from his phone, shocking him out of his memories.

"We're here," Jeanette said as soon as he answered.

"All right. Wait outside for me. I'll come find you," Theodore said.

He started his car up, and drove around the airport. His stomach tied in knots. He felt his neck break out in a cold sweat. Theodore found himself trying to take deep breaths. _It will be okay, _he told himself. _It will be okay. _But deep down inside, he couldn't make himself believe that. He found his heart starting to pound, as he got sight of the two tall chipmunks standing nervously next to one another. In spite of his anxiety, Theodore noticed that Jeanette kept taking worried glances at Simon. She would reach her arm out to touch him, then pull away. She stood behind him, so he didn't notice. But Theodore did. Finally, as Theodore drove up to the curb, he looked at his brother. _He really hasn't changed all that much, _Theodore thought. Simon wore a blue shirt with jeans and sneakers. He still wore the same old blue-framed glasses. Theodore had to keep himself from laughing. _I don't think any of us have outgrown wearing "our" colors, _he thought, looking down at his own green sweat-suit. The expression on Simon's face kept Theodore from smiling. The expression on his face could best be described as stony. Theodore popped the trunk. _I should go out and help, _he thought. He debated with himself for a minute. But an encouraging look from Jeanette got him out of the car.

Jeanette walked over to him and the two hugged. Out of the corner of his eye, Theodore saw Simon stare at them. The two of them broke apart, and Jeanette grabbed her baggage and began putting it in the trunk. Simon and Theodore stared at each other for a minute. Theodore did not know what to say to him. Simon averted his eyes, so Theodore looked down. He reached down to grab one of Simon's bags, at the same time Simon did.

"Sorry," Theodore said, flushed.

Simon took the bag. "It's fine," he said. Then Simon cleared his throat and offered Theodore his hand. Theodore looked at it for a moment before giving his hand. The two shook hands for a second. Theodore felt really uncomfortable. He removed his hand.

"I'll help you get the rest of the bags," he said quickly.

Their baggage was put in the trunk, and they piled into the car. Jeanette took the front passenger seat, and Simon sat in the back.

"Um…How's Dave?" Jeanette asked.

Theodore sighed, as he began to pull away from the airport. "There's been no change. I think he's hiding something, though. When I asked him how he was today, he wouldn't look me in the eye."

"Oh no," Jeanette said, closing her eyes.

"Have you spoken to his doctors?" Simon asked from the backseat.

"Not since the night of the accident. Somehow, I keep missing them," Theodore said.

He saw Simon nodding in his rearview mirror. _I hope he doesn't think I'm stupid or something,_ he thought squirming.

"Can we go straight to the hospital?" Jeanette asked.

"Well, I thought you could drop your bags off first," Theodore said.

Jeanette nodded. "What hotel are you taking us to?"

"Hotel?" Theodore exclaimed. "You're not staying in a hotel. You're staying at our house. I know Dave would prefer it. And since we finished the attic and the basement, we now have plenty of guest rooms."

"Um, Simon?" Jeanette began. "Where are you planning on staying?"

"I was planning on staying at a hotel as well. But Theodore's right. There are plenty of guest rooms at Dave's house now," Simon said.

"I'm willing to sleep on the couch, if you want the old room back," Theodore offered.

There was a pause. "That wouldn't be right. I couldn't push you out of your room," Simon said.

"It used to be your room too," Theodore couldn't help but point out.

An uncomfortable silence fell among the three of them. _I wish I had kept my mouth shut, _Theodore thought. Briefly, he looked over to look at Jeanette, who had her eyes glued to the window. Theodore shifted his eyes to look at the rearview. His jaw dropped as he realized Simon was staring…at Jeanette! He felt his cheeks warm at the naked longing in Simon's eyes. Theodore yanked his gaze away from Simon as quickly as he could, and kept it on the road. _So that's the way of it?_ he thought. _I wonder…_His thoughts drifted off as he focused on the drive home.


	16. General Hospital: Part One

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note #1:

Thank you to PurpleFox93, Girl4Christ15, DiceRox09, chipmunksnchipettes, and Dhanvantarie! I know I do this every chapter, but I really appreciate your reviews!

Chapter Sixteen

General Hospital: Part One

Several flashbulbs flashed at the chipmunk. He smiled for the cameras and drove away. He ignored all of the questions.

"Is it true your father is in the hospital?"

"Was Dave Seville drinking before the accident?"

"I heard there were drugs involved. Do you have anything to say about this?"

Alvin just smiled and waved at all of them. His smile evaporated as he drove away from the paparazzi. _What a circus!_ he thought. _And where the hell do they get this crap? Drugs? The only drugs Dave has ever used are the prescription kind, and only when he had the flu or something! _Alvin gritted his teeth as he headed for the hospital. _What a bunch of vultures!_ He really wanted to punch one of them out, but Dave had long ago taught him that he really didn't want bad publicity. Alvin knew what he did reflected on Dave as a parent, and he didn't want anyone to judge Dave poorly. So he behaved himself in public. In private, he beat the hell out of a punching bag, pretending it was various members of the paparazzi. _Well, it works, _he thought. _I always feel better after._

"Call me on the line. Call me call me any anytime. Call me my love," started playing from his phone.

"Talk to me," Alvin said, answering it.

"Oh, Alvie! It's me-e!" a high-pitched girly voice whined on the other end.

"Oh, hi…" _Barbie? Candy? Crystal?_ Alvin searched his mind for her name.

"Al-_vie_! It's Barbie!" she squealed into the phone.

"I knew that. How could I forget you, Barbie?" he said insincerely.

She giggled. "Oh you're so funny, Alvie! You know no one could ever forget me!"

_Well, no one would ever forget your voice, at least. _Alvin winced. _I know, as a chipmunk, I have always had a high-pitched voice, but really! What did I ever see in her again?_

"What can I do for you, babe?" he said.

"Is it true you're dating that underwear model, what's-her-name?" she said. He could hear the pout in her voice.

"Giselle Rousseau?" he offered.

"Yeah, her," she said. "Is it true you're seeing her now?"

"Um," he began, then heard a _beep_ that indicated the other line. "That's my other line. I'll talk to you later, Barbie."

He hung up the phone over her "But Alvie!"

"Talk to me," he said.

"Alvin Seville! How dare you go out with that slutty underwear model! You told me I was the only woman for you! How could you? You're such a jerk! I knew better than to go out with you in the first place! I just knew you were going to do this to me! I knew it!" a girl's voice yammered on and on. "What am I going to do now?! I've been cheated on by Alvin Seville! Everyone I know is laughing at me behind my back! I know they are! And it's all your fault!"

Alvin stopped listening to her ranting. "Aura. Aura! AURA!" He repeated a pattern very familiar to him.

She stopped talking. _Finally!_ he thought. He could sense her sullenness on the other end, though.

"We talked about this. We agreed to see other people," he said, very slowly and deliberately, like he was talking to a child.

"_I_ didn't agree! I thought we said we were going to think about it, and the next thing I read, you're seeing that slut! Without telling me!" she screeched. Alvin had to pull the phone away from his ear.

Another _beep._ _ Saved by the beep!_ he thought.

"I've-got-to-go-Aura-bye!" he hung up on her, and switched over.

"Hello?" he asked, more anxiously this time.

"'Ello Alvin," a sexy accented voice said on the other end.

Alvin hadn't thought it possible, but his body grew even more tense. "Hello Monique."

"'Ow ees your fazzer?" she asked.

"I don't know yet. I'm going to see him now," he said. "How did you find out about it anyway?"

"Oh. I vread the papers, Alvin. Vhy haven't you, 'ow do you say, svung by? I could comfort you," she said.

Alvin shuddered. "Sorry, babe. I haven't had time."

"Oh, Alvin. You should find ze time," she purred into the phone.

"Um, Monique. I am currently driving in traffic. I should probably go," he said.

"Vell, I vill leave you to it zen," she said. "Au revoir!"

"Bye," he said.

_I think I need to change my number again,_ he thought. _Barbie is irritating. Aura gives me a headache, and Monique is just plain scary. Where do I find these girls?_

_Do you really want the answer to that? _his common sense asked.

_Not particularly,_ he answered his mind.

"Cause I'm young and I'm hip, and so beautiful, I'm gonna be a supermodel," began playing from his phone. _Giselle's ring_, he thought. It was the one she had picked out for herself. She had wanted a specific ring on his phone. _So you remember just how special I am!_ she had told him. At the time, he hadn't had the heart to tell her that song gave him a headache...especially on days like this one was turning out to be.

"Talk to me," he answered tiredly.

"Alvin! You won't believe this!" she said.

"What won't I believe, Giselle?" he said.

"I had lunch with an agent who said he could get me a meeting with Victoria Secret!" she exclaimed.

"That's great, Giselle," he said.

"Isn't it, though?" she said, and continued chattering on about what a great boost to her career it would be. Alvin turned his mind off, as he normally did when she started talking about...well, anything. Instead, he started going through his plans for the next few days. _Well, I definitely need to fit seeing Dave into everything. And hopefully, it will be during times when Theodore will not be there._

_That's not a nice thing to think, you know,_ his common sense told him.

_Oh who cares? _he snapped. Deep down inside, though, he felt the pin pricks of his conscience.

_You know you should have called Simon, too, and not left it all up to poor Theodore,_ his common sense reminded him.

_No! I will never speak to that jerk again! He __**betrayed**__ me! Need I remind you of that?_ he retorted.

_Betrayed you? Or chose to go with his own heart? Something you had to know he would have done eventually anyway?_ his common sense questioned.

Alvin squirmed. _Shut up! What do you know?_

_Everything you do,_ his common sense said. _After all, I __**am**__ you._

Alvin shook his head. _I think I'm going crazy!_ Arguing with his own common sense seemed like an exercise in futility.

"Alvin? Are you still there?" The words finally penetrated his consciousness.

"Yes, I'm here. Sorry. One of my songs came on the radio," he said.

"Oh Alvin! We're talking about _me_ here! We can talk about you some other time," she said.

Alvin pulled into a parking spot. "Sure," he said distractedly. "But for now, I've got to go. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye Alvin!" Giselle said.

He hung up the phone, shaking his head. _I'm having one weird day_, he thought.

Alvin looked around, to make sure there were no members of the press around. He checked his hair in the mirror, to make sure it was perfect. _Who knows who I'll meet?_ he thought.

Alvin got out of the car and walked into the hospital. He flirted with several of the nurses on his way to Dave's room. He got onto Dave's floor, and saw a blonde woman leaving. _She's hot!_ he thought, as he turned around to watch her walk onto the elevator. He bumped into someone.

"I'm sor—" he began to say as he turned around, then stopped.

A female brunette chipmunk adjusted her purple-framed glasses.

"Alvin?" she said.

"J-J-Jeanette?" Alvin said, shocked.

She nodded, backing away from him. She refused to meet his eyes, and began fiddling with her hands.

"Wh-wh-what are you doing here?" he demanded.

"Theodore called me. He told me about Dave's request. I hopped the first flight I could," she explained.

"Oh," he said. A pause fell between them. Alvin could not believe she was there. _Wait. She and Theodore have been in contact for years. I guess it's not that big of a surprise to see her here,_ he thought. Alvin stepped back. He looked at the ceiling above her. She looked at the floor. Alvin cleared his throat.

"So, how's life?" he said.

"Um, good," she said, swallowing hard. "You?"

"Can't complain," he nodded, then he looked past her to the two figures standing in the hallway. _Blue shirt? Blue glasses? Hey, that looks like…_A very familiar rage that he'd lived with for the past three years exploded through his veins. He pushed past Jeanette and stormed up to him.

"So the prodigal son returns, does he?" he snapped at Simon.

The two of them turned to look at him. Simon shook his head and crossed his arms.

"Alvin!" Theodore said quietly.

"So it's going to be one of _those _meetings, is it?" Simon snapped back.

"Simon!" Theodore said, looking frantically from one to the other.

"What do you mean by that?" Alvin demanded.

Simon scoffed. "One of those meetings where you pretend to be the innocent victim, and I'm the evil villain who deliberately screwed up your life."

"You did!" Alvin said. "Or you tried to! How could you have known that I would be even more successful as Alvin Seville, solo artist?"

Simon snorted. "That's not what the tabloids say. Besides, if I did do you such a favor, then shouldn't you say 'thank you'?"

A red haze fell over Alvin's vision. "Thank you? THANK YOU? **THANK YOU**?"

"There was no need to say it three times, Alvin," Simon said dryly.

Alvin stepped towards him. Theodore grabbed him, trying to stop him from going after Simon.

"Stop it guys!" he yelled.

Jeanette stood to the side, wringing her hands. Alvin tried to fight past Theodore to get at Simon. Simon just stood there with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Boys! What are you doing?" an older woman's voice said.

Alvin and Theodore stopped moving, and turned around. Simon relaxed his stance. Jeanette closed her eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Miss Miller," Jeanette said, running into her arms.

"Hello Jeanette!" she said, hugging her. "How's my brainy girl?"

"Better, now that you're here," she couldn't help but say.

Miss Miller looked beyond her, to the three shame-faced chipmunks.

"Boys, is that really proper behavior for a hospital? You three could get yourselves thrown out, and then what would your father do?" she said. "You ought to be ashamed of yourselves."

"Yes, Miss Miller," Alvin said, scoffing the floor with his foot. _Why is it she can always make me feel like I'm eight years old again?_

"Yes, Miss Miller," Theodore said in a small voice.

"Now, Simon, why don't you come over here and give me a hug?" Miss Miller said.

A small smile briefly crossed Simon's features. He walked over to her, being careful to avoid touching either one of his brothers. He hugged her.

"So two of our three out-of-towners have come home," she declared, pulling Jeanette in front of her, next to Simon. "That's nice."

Alvin glared. _Oh really? Miss Miller, I really think you're crazy sometimes,_ he thought.

"So why are we all standing out here in the hallway?" she asked.

"He wasn't there when we got here. The nurses said he was taken away for some tests. He'll be back soon. We just thought we would hang out until he returned," Theodore explained.

"Oh," Miss Miller said. "Well, why don't the five of us go sit in the waiting room on this floor? I'm sure it's much more comfortable in there, and we can return later."

_Oh_, _that sounds like a good idea,_ Alvin thought sarcastically. But he said nothing.

Miss Miller led the way into the waiting room. Theodore and Jeanette followed her. Alvin noticed the worried looks on their faces. Then he turned to glare at Simon. Simon looked down at him, before walking away. _Why did he have to get the height too?_ Alvin demanded in his mind. Alvin sighed, and followed. _Why couldn't I have visited later? _After a pause, _why did I even get up this morning?_

******

Author's Note #2:

A lot of you have been asking for Alvin and Simon interaction for awhile. I hope you enjoyed it!

And don't worry…there will be a complete set there soon! ^_^


	17. Kicking and Screaming

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. For the next few chapters, there will also be lots of screaming, fighting, and unresolved anger. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note #1:  
I hope you guys continue to enjoy this fic! In case you couldn't tell from the previous chapter, the ride has gotten bumpy! I will combine thank you's in the next chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter Seventeen

Kicking and Screaming

_Ding-dong!_ The sound jerked the auburn-haired chipmunk out of her sleep. She sprang up off her head, then groaned at the sharp pain that exploded in her brain. Her body collapsed back onto her bed. _Oooh!_ she thought. _Why do I do this to myself? _One of her hands went to her temples, while the other spread against the bed.

_Ding-dong!_ The doorbell went off again.

_Go away!_ Brittany thought. _I don't have the energy to answer the door._

She pulled the rose-pink cotton covers over her head. _I really should get a glass of water, _she thought, focusing on her dry mouth. _But that requires too much energy. _

_Ding-dong!_

Brittany continued ignoring it. _At least I don't have to worry about immediately getting up today. And I don't have to kick anyone out of my apartment either._ Her eyebrows furrowed. _Wait a minute…I remember flirting with that really cute guy. _She looked around her. _Why isn't he here?_ Vague memories appeared in her head of her assistant escorting her away from him, with the help of the ever-loyal Monty.

_Click._ _Click-click-click. Click. _Brittany's eyes widened at those sounds. _What the hell?_ she thought, as they were followed by the sound of the doorknob turning and the door opening.

Brittany sat up, wincing at the pain. She wrapped the sheet around her near-naked body for protection. She grabbed a small statuette from the bedside table, ready to throw it. Determined footsteps walked through the apartment and into the bedroom. Brittany tensed her body up, the adrenaline pumping through her veins, dispelling the hangover. She pulled her hand back to throw…and dropped the statuette to the floor as her mouth opened in astonishment at the blonde and very familiar person standing in her doorway.

"_Eleanor!_" she exclaimed. "What the hell are you doing here? You scared the shit out of me!"

The blonde chipmunk didn't answer her. Instead she looked around the room, a disgusted look on her face. Brittany found herself blushing at the shambles her apartment was in. She knew Eleanor would have seen the clothes, bottles, glasses, and papers strewn all over the apartment.

"God Brit, how can you live like this?" Eleanor demanded.

Brittany glared at her. "It's my apartment. I can live how I want to!" She resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at her sister after saying _so there!_

"Well, you look like you belong in this apartment, at least," Eleanor said.

Brittany gasped. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Eleanor shook her head. "That's an argument for another day." She clapped her hands, making Brittany put her hands over her ears.

"Don't _do_ that, Eleanor! My hearing is very delicate in the mornings! You know that!" Brittany snapped.

Eleanor stared at her. "Your hearing would be less delicate in the mornings if you would drink a little less the night before."

"What would you know about it? Who the hell do you think you are?" Brittany demanded. "And what the hell are you doing in my apartment?"

"First of all, every entertainment magazine and channel probably has caught some picture of you drunk or hung-over. Second of all, I do believe I am your _sister_, which gives me some rights into your life. As for the last, I have a question for you. Brittany, when was the last time you heard from Dave?" Eleanor said.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Brittany asked.

"I'll tell you as soon as you answer the question," Eleanor said.

"Ugh! I can't believe you're making me think this early," Brittany snapped, lying back against the headboard.

Eleanor snorted. "Early? Brittany, it's almost 8! _P.M_.!"

Brittany yawned. "What-ever," she waved it away. "Anyway, I last spoke to Dave two days ago."

"And you haven't heard from him since? Your manager doesn't call you in two days, and you don't think it's unusual?" Eleanor asked, incredulous.

Brittany shrugged. "I just didn't think about it."

"Well, that's obvious," Eleanor said, rolling her eyes. "Have you checked your messages from yesterday yet?"

Brittany shook her head. "I just went from an interview to a photo shoot to a party."

"That's too bad," Eleanor said. "I guess that leaves it up to me."

"Leaves what up to you?" Brittany questioned.

"Well, there's no easy way of saying this," her voice softened. She looked at her sister with compassion. "Brittany, Dave was in a car accident. He's in the hospital."

"What!?" Brittany exclaimed, the last of her hangover forgotten with that news. "Is he okay?"

Eleanor shrugged. "He has quite a few injuries, but only one that appears to be serious, as far as we know."

"Oh," Brittany said, slipping back against the bed. "That's why you're here, isn't it? Instead of being at college?"

Eleanor nodded. "Also, because Dave made a request that seemed so little compared to what he's done for us."

"What kind of request?" Brittany asked, suspiciously.

Eleanor put her hands on her hips. Brittany knew, from her stance, that she wasn't going to like what Eleanor was going to say. _She only does that when she's gearing up to argue with me_, Brittany thought.

"He wants the six of us in the same room together," she said.

_The six of us? Who's the six of us? Oh!_ Brittany's eyes widened as she realized the implications of that remark.

"Are you kidding me?!" Brittany demanded. "You better not be talking about who I think you're talking about! Because if you are, you can forget it!"

"Brittany Miller!" Eleanor snapped. "Dave has been just as much a father to us as he has been to his boys. It's the least we could do!"

Brittany violently shook her head, ignoring the pain shooting through her temples. "Have you completely lost your mind?! I will not willingly put myself anywhere near that-that-that _playboy_! Not to mention any of the other Chipmunks! Everything that happened is all _their _fault!"

Eleanor raised her eyebrow. "Oh really?" she said, then shook her head. "That's debatable, but also something we can leave for another time." She began yanking on the sheet. "For now, you _are_ going to get dressed, and you _are_ going to see Dave in the hospital. I think the others are already there."

"No!" Brittany screamed, ignoring everything else her sister said after she ordered her to go to the hospital.

Eleanor yanked the sheet off of her. "Yes you are! You are _not_ going to act like a spoiled brat!"

"You can't make me go!" Brittany scrambled to grab one of the blankets off the floor to cover herself.

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Fine, Brittany. And when Dave asks me where you are, I'll just tell him you're a spoiled bitch who he's done _so _much for, but who didn't care enough to come see him."

Brittany froze, her lips turned white from the rage. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh wouldn't I?" Eleanor leaned forward. "So are you going to get dressed or will Dave find out what kind of brat you really are?"

Brittany stumbled out of the bed and tripped over the sheet. "Get out of here!" she screamed as she headed for the bathroom.

"Hurry up!" Eleanor yelled. "I think we should get this over with tonight!"

_I hate you!_ Brittany thought. _You are as much a traitor as ever!_ She grabbed various clothes off of the floor and out of the drawers.

"I will take as much time as I want. If you're going to force me in the same room as that asshole, then I'm going to look my best," Brittany snapped.

"Brittany, you really don't want me coming in there to 'help' you," Eleanor threatened.

Inarticulate with rage, Brittany slammed into the bathroom. She turned the water on and stepped into the shower, ignoring the temperature. She also ignored the fact that her face was wet before she ever turned the water on. Knowing that Eleanor would be unable to hear her over the water, Brittany allowed herself to cry.

_Oh Ellie, how did we get to this point?_ She felt herself shake as she hurried through her shower as best she could._ Make this pain go away, please, please!_ she begged the universe. A dull pain throbbed through her head, but it was nothing to the agony in her heart. With heavy movements, Brittany went through the motions of getting ready. She knew her sister was perfectly capable of following through on her threat, and she hurried as best she was able to.

Brittany sniffled. _Stop that!_ she told herself. _There's no use in crying about this. There's nothing you can do about it. Just get yourself ready to face your enemies._

And she did, planting a false smile on her face. _Just be fabulous, and you can get through this._

With a heart like lead, Brittany opened the bathroom door, to face the lion's den.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Author's Note #2:  
I'm sorry if Eleanor seems a little out-of-character in this chapter, but really, I promise you, she has a good reason for behaving the way she is towards Brittany. Anyway, enjoy, until I finish chapter 18!


	18. General Hospital Part Two

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note #1:  
Thank you to everyone who reviewed! You guys are awesome!

I must apologize if the following part seems a little strange. In order to get things to go in the direction I wanted to, I had to change styles. I hope you guys enjoy it!

Chapter Eighteen

General Hospital Part Two

An auburn-haired chipmunk dressed to the nines and a blonde-haired chipmunk in more sporty wear walked into the hospital. They didn't speak to one another, and didn't look at each other, but they were obviously heading to the same destination. The blonde walked up to the desk.

"I would like to know which room Dave Seville is in, please," she asked in a charming voice.

The receptionist told her, but had a dazed look on her face. _I know __**she's **__Brittany Miller__**,**_ she thought, looking at the auburn-haired one. _That has to make this…_Her jaw dropped as the two of them walked over to the elevator. She remembered not ten minutes earlier, another very well-known chipmunk had walked in. He'd flashed a gorgeous smile at her. And only a few minutes before that, his brothers, with a brunette female chipmunk, had walked up there too.

_Oh my god! _she thought. _The Chipmunks and the Chipettes are **all **in the hospital, right now!_ She couldn't wait to tell the rest of the staff later.

***************************************************************************************************************************************************

Eleanor looked at her sister out of the corner of her eye. _Did I really have to be so rough on her? _She thought about it. _Yes, I did. _She shook her head. Eleanor knew that nothing else would have gotten Brittany here. _Why do you have to be so stubborn, Brittany?_

For her part, Brittany was keeping quiet. She kept her polite smile, but inside, she was fuming. Her arms were crossed over her chest. She kept shooting dagger glares at Eleanor. _I'm going to get you for this!_ she thought. _At least I'll be able to see Dave. _Brittany did feel pricks from her conscience over not trying to find out why Dave wasn't talking to her. _I hope he's okay._

The two of them walked out of the elevator and towards the room. They turned the corner and stopped dead.

Four other chipmunks had been walking towards the room from the other direction, along with a gray-haired woman who threw open her arms. The chipmunks all stopped in place as well.

"Eleanor! How great to see you!" Miss Miller exclaimed.

Eleanor walked over to her and hugged her.

Brittany stood still, her heart trying to pound out of her chest. She avoided looking at the only one she was blood-related to. _I don't look at traitors, _she thought, which also meant she didn't look at the tallest of the chipmunks either. Her gaze met the fuming gaze of the only other member of either group who continued his career. She held her chin up, keeping her arms crossed. _I'm surprised he can find the time, what with balancing his time between sluts._

Alvin snorted. "I didn't know they let slutty alcoholics into this hospital."_ What the hell is she doing here?!_ His temper which had been on steady boil peaked. _She has no right! The others don't live here. They have an excuse for not being here, _he thought. _Oh really? _a voice in the back of his mind asked. Alvin ignored it. _But where in the hell has she been?!_

Brittany tossed her hair. "At least I don't keep a harem in my pocket. Do you really remember all of their names?" She shook her head, _tsk_ing. "You must have a better memory that I ever thought you did." _How dare he?! How dare he?!_

Theodore grabbed his arm. "Remember what Miss Miller said. We could get kicked out of the hospital. And we're about to see Dave." A nurse had come in to tell them that Dave had returned from his tests. Theodore's heart started pounding. _We are so close to fulfilling Dave's request. Please, just behave yourselves, for just five minutes. Please._

Eleanor turned back to Brittany. "We're here for Dave," she muttered. "Don't forget that!"

"He started it!" she snapped, stung by her sister's rebuke. _Why does that surprise you? She's never taken your side,_ she thought.

"I don't care if he started it or not. You are going to behave yourself, or else you can just go wait in the car, and I'll tell Dave you didn't care to come see him," Eleanor threatened.

Brittany opened her mouth, but the look in Eleanor's brown eyes shut her up. _It's not fair! __**He**__ always gets everything! And what do I get?_ She ignored the voice which reminded her of a certain student council election she had won…that Alvin had wanted also. Brittany closed her eyes. _I'll just pretend this is a scene in a movie. I've done plenty of movies with him._ To this day, Brittany and Alvin were still paired together in movies. They had recently done a period piece. They hated each other with a fiery passion that seemed to never end, but that passion translated well on film. _And a part of you really enjoys having this effect on him_, a small voice reminded her. _It means he hasn't forgotten you. _

_Shut up!_ she screamed at the voice.

"Theodore, why don't you into Dave's room and tell him you have a surprise for him?" Miss Miller said.

"That's a good idea, Miss Miller," Theodore said. He released Alvin, who stood back away from everyone. He kept glaring back and forth between Brittany and Simon. Finally, Simon turned to him.

"Yes?" he said.

"What?" Alvin snapped.

"Either say what's on your mind, or stop glaring at me," Simon ordered. "It's breaking my concentration." _What are you doing?_ his mind screamed at him. _Don't pick fights!_ But now that the moment had come, Simon wasn't sure he could do this. After all, he had spent two years away from home. He had deliberately chosen to go to an East Coast school, to get as far away from this mess as he could. _So you ran away,_ his mind offered him. _No, I just got away from a bad situation, _he defended himself. _You ran away, _"Guilt" insisted.

"What makes you think I have anything to say to you?" Alvin retorted.

"Oh gee, I wonder," Simon rejoined, rolling his eyes.

"Boys," Jeanette hesitantly spoke up. "Please," she begged. _Please stop,_ she thought. _I can't take any more of this._ Neither one of her sisters had looked at her since they arrived. Jeanette had sat down on a chair outside Dave's room, her legs drawn up to her stomach and her arms around her legs. _Why did I come here? Why did I think this would work?_ she wondered, trying to fight off the tears.

Both chipmunks looked at her. Simon felt a lump in his throat. He walked away from Alvin. _See? _his guilt said. _You only hurt those you love._

For his part, Alvin felt extremely uncomfortable. He looked away from both Jeanette and Simon. At that moment, he felt like someone who had been caught kicking a puppy, something a person just does _not_ do.

Miss Miller looked at her three girls. "What's going on, girls? Why don't you say hi?"

Eleanor heard her sister's plea and Miss Miller's question, and looked over at Jeanette. _She looks so lost_, she thought.

"Stay," she said to Brittany.

"What am I, a dog?" Brittany snapped.

Eleanor raised her eyebrows. Brittany rolled her eyes. "Okay!" she said defensively.

Eleanor walked over to Jeanette. "You didn't say hi," she said.

Jeanette looked up at her, a warmth coming into them that melted Eleanor's heart. She leapt out of the chair, and the sisters hugged. _Oh, sure, forgive her. Let's just forget how deceitful she is,_ a nasty voice in Eleanor's mind said. Her heart quickly froze up again, and she awkwardly pulled out of the hug. She offered Jeanette a quick smile, before walking away. She ignored the quizzical look in Jeanette's eyes.

Miss Miller let out a big sigh. _What __**is**__ the matter with these children?_ she thought. _Before the end of the night, I will make one of them tell me._ She, too, saw the lost look in Jeanette's eyes. _I think she's ready to break._

"Hey guys! Why don't you come in?" Theodore exclaimed excitedly.

Miss Miller held back, while the rest of them filed into the room. Jeanette was the first one out of the chair and into the room, followed by Simon, Alvin, Brittany, and Eleanor.

***************************************************************************************************************************************************

When Theodore came in to say he had a surprise for Dave, he had wondered what it could possibly be…then Theodore moved aside, and Jeanette walked into the room.

As best he could, considering the cast, he opened his arms. "Jeanette!" he said. The shyest of all six ran into his arms, tripped over one of her sandals, and fell into the hug. He looked up to see a sheepish Simon, Alvin, and smiling Brittany and Eleanor. "Simon! Alvin! Brittany! Eleanor!" Each stood aside so the next could hug him. They all moved to various places in the room. Dave looked from each of them in amazement.

"How?" he said.

Theodore smiled. "You told me you wanted all of us here, so I arranged it, with some help from Jeanette," he acknowledged his only friend in the room.

"And Eleanor," Jeanette gave credit where credit was due.

In spite of the awkwardness and the anger, all six had to admit that the look on Dave's face was worth the discomfort all of them felt towards one another.

***************************************************************************************************************************************************

Miss Miller waited for as long as she could. She allowed Dave a chance to question all six of them about their lives, especially Eleanor, Jeanette, and Simon, all of whom he never saw. She knew, though, that Eleanor, Jeanette, and Simon had to be tiring, since they'd crossed time zones. At one point, she introduced food into the conversation, and she saw all of them start talking about how hungry they were.

"Well, why don't I go get everyone something? Jeanette, why don't you come with me?" Miss Miller said, grabbing the middle Chipette, and didn't give her a chance to object.

Before Jeanette knew it, she was walking out of the hospital towards Miss Miller's car, without having any idea of how it had happened. She felt dazed…and drained. Today had been _hard_. Gathering her courage to walk into Simon's dorm had been amazing enough, getting him to come with her, then spending the last few hours with him…and then having the fights, near-fights, and all of the awkwardness…not to mention how Brittany refused to acknowledge her existence, and Eleanor acted strange. _When will this end?_ she wondered. _Probably never._ She had to wipe away a tear, hoping Miss Miller would not notice.

Miss Miller drove away from the hospital towards a pizza place. She parked, but made no move to get out of the car. Jeanette began to try to get out, but Miss Miller gently touched her shoulder.

"Miss Miller?" Jeanette asked.

"Jeanette, it's time you told me what happened," Miss Miller said.

"What happened when?" Jeanette asked, squirming.

"What happened in high school to turn the closest set of friends I've ever seen into enemies," Miss Miller said.

"Miss Miller," Jeanette began to tell her the same b.s. all six of them used.

"Jeanette. It's time. Lord knows you need to talk. And maybe I could help. These old bones have some wisdom in them, you know," Miss Miller said, tilting Jeanette's chin up towards her.

Jeanette stared at Miss Miller for a moment, her green eyes filling with tears. _She's right. It is time. I certainly can't hold it in anymore._ She slowly nodded.

"It all began with the student council elections at the end of our junior year…"

***************************************************************************************************************************************************

Author's Note #2:  
Don't kill me! *ducks down* I will get the next chapter done tonight, and it will be out ASAP! So don't kill me!


	19. Once Upon a Time

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note:

Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! I hope you enjoyed it!

So here it is: the chapter you've all been waiting for. I really hope you all like this chapter! It is almost twice as long as the previously longest chapter. So far, it has also been the hardest one to write. So enjoy!

Chapter Nineteen

Once Upon a Time

"_It all began with the student council elections at the end of our junior year," Jeanette started._

************************************************************************

A group of six people lounged around one of the cafeteria tables. All six were dressed in stylish clothes, though only two of them wore them with an ease. Everyone in the school knew who they were, but they all gave them a wide berth. Each of the six had other friends, of course, but most of the time at school, they were with each other, especially when the two lead singers were in an on-phase of their on-again, off-again relationship, as they were right then. The entire school gossiped about how Eleanor and Theodore had been together ever since their freshman year Homecoming. However, the only couple no one knew about was Simon and Jeanette. Officially they claimed they weren't together, but they went to every event together. Every high school dance and every red carpet event. All six knew that they were gossiped about, but right at that moment, that wasn't what they were thinking about.

The auburn-haired chipmunk sighed. "If it weren't for junior prom coming up, I would want school to be over right now."

"Forget the prom," her red-clad companion said. "Let's just go right to summer vacation."

"Forget the prom?" she demanded. "Alvin, are you _nuts_?"

"Here they go again," Simon said, and the other four tuned them out. The conversation turned to something innocuous for awhile, while the other two bickered back and forth.

"Hey look!" Eleanor said, noticing one of the signs in the cafeteria. The other five looked at the sign. "It looks like student council elections for next year are about to start up."

Simon shook his head. "Count me out. It's just a popularity contest."

Alvin's eyes glowed. "A popularity contest we could totally win! After all, being the Chipmunks has to count for something. I could be our next student body president!"

"You?" Brittany scoffed. "You could never be president. Besides, _I_ was thinking about running for president."

"Don't make me laugh!" Alvin said. "You couldn't win. Not against me anyway. After all, everyone knows the Chipmunks are more famous than the Chipettes."

"Oh no," Jeanette groaned.

"Not again," Simon rolled his eyes.

"You guys have stayed together for five months straight!" Theodore pointed out. "It's a record!"

"Do you want to ruin that?" Eleanor added.

Brittany gasped. "You're telling me to back down from this challenge?" She tossed her hair. "Besides, everyone knows _I_ would win in any popularity contest."

"No, you wouldn't," Alvin said.

"Wanna bet?" And Brittany stormed over to the table where the sign up sheets were.

************************************************************************

"_So she nominated herself for president. Alvin followed her, of course, and nominated himself," Jeanette said._

"_Well, that doesn't sound any different from normal for those two," Miss Miller commented. "After all, they've been competitive for years!"_

_Jeanette shrugged. "Maybe it wouldn't have been, if other events hadn't followed. Brittany won the election, but mostly through pranks that we kept pulling. For some reason, we've always been able to out-prank the boys."_

"_You cheated, Jeanette?" Miss Miller exclaimed. "I'm so ashamed!"_

_Jeanette blushed and looked down. "Yes, we cheated. Both sides cheated, and in the end, Brittany won. Of course, that spelled the end of their relationship…again. Then came junior prom..."_

************************************************************************

"Brittany's barely talking to us for coming here with you two," Jeanette told Simon as they stood by the refreshment table.

"Alvin's been the same way," Theodore said.

Eleanor shook her head. "I could strangle those two sometimes."

All four of them were dressed in formal clothes. Theodore and Simon wore tuxedoes, one with a green tie and the other with a blue tie. Eleanor wore a short strapless emerald green dress with a shirred bodice and empire waist with glitter on the filmy overlay. Jeanette wore a deep purple corseted dress with a wide skirt. For once, Jeanette's hair was down and fell in soft curls around her face. Eleanor's hair had been French-braided and decorated with sparkly barrettes and clips.

Jeanette gasped. "There's Brittany!" She pointed at the entrance to the ball room.

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Could she make it more obvious she's trying to make Alvin jealous?"

Brittany wore an extremely low cut, extremely tight rose pink gown with a slight train. Her hair had been braided and placed in a fancy bun, surrounded by a golden tiara. She was arm-in-arm with the captain of the football team.

"Look at Alvin," Theodore whispered to Simon.

Alvin stared at Brittany, rage growing on his face. Simon sighed. "I'll be right back."

He hurried over to Alvin and stood in front of him.

"Can you believe her? She's making a fool out of herself in that dress! I'll bet the entire student body calls for a re-election tomorrow!" Alvin fumed.

"Alvin, could you yell louder? I don't think they heard you in the next county," Simon pointed out.

Alvin flushed. "But Simon!"

"She's not _your_ date, Alvin. You have one of your own," Simon said, pointing towards one of the school cheerleaders.

Alvin spluttered the whole way, but Simon was finally able to shift his brother over to his date, so he "wouldn't make more of a fool of himself than he already had."

When he returned to the refreshment table, Theodore and Eleanor had started dancing on the dance floor. Thanks to their shared musical backgrounds, they could follow each other's movements perfectly. Jeanette had been watching them, then looked at Simon as he approached her.

"Good job, Simon," Jeanette said, nodding towards Alvin.

A loud song suddenly blasted across the dance floor.

"Want to go outside?" Simon yelled.

Jeanette nodded. He offered her his arm, and the two walked out the door to the outside. The two of them made their way to a beautifully decorated gazebo. Once there, Jeanette sighed.

"Do you think there's a chance the two of them will get back together again?" she asked.

Simon shrugged. "I don't know. I don't see why not. They've been doing this for years."

"Kind of makes me glad I haven't dated anyone yet," Jeanette said.

"Oh, but I think the kind of guy you would be with wouldn't do that," Simon said to her suggestively.

She quirked an eyebrow and had to keep herself from smiling. "Is that so?"

"That's so," Simon said. His eyes perused her. "Have I told you tonight how beautiful you look?"

Jeanette blushed. "Twice."

He tucked a hair behind her ear. "Well, you are."

"Thank you," she said. "You clean up nice yourself."

A comfortable silence fell between them. They could hear the song end, and the beginning intro music to "Take My Breath Away" began.

Simon pulled Jeanette close to him, and the two of them just began to sway to the distant music.

"Simon," she began.

"Yes, Jeanette?" he asked.

"I wish this moment could just stand still," she whispered.

"Me too," he agreed.

************************************************************************

"_But of course, it couldn't," Jeanette said. "Before the end of the night, Alvin made a total fool of himself over Brittany. I didn't see it happen, and neither one of them would ever speak of it, but the gist of it is that he said something nasty about her dress and she threw the entire bowl of punch at him. He vowed he would get even with her, if it was the last thing he did."_

"_Oh my," Miss Miller said, blowing her nose. "And did he?"_

_Jeanette sighed. "Not at first. But he eventually did, and I was the instrument of his revenge."_

"_**You**__ were?" Miss Miller exclaimed. "But Jeanette, how could you possibly have been that instrument?"_

"_I'll get there," Jeanette said. "The rest of the school year was quiet. We all hoped that Alvin had forgotten about it. Meanwhile, as the summer began, Simon and I were starting to make plans for the future…"_

************************************************************************

The two brainy chipmunks lay against the grass, enjoying their first day of summer together.

"So what are your plans for next year?" Jeanette asked, twirling a dandelion.

"Well, I was planning on taking as many AP classes as I could," he answered, his head propped on his hand so he could look at Jeanette, who was lying on her back.

"No, I mean, after?" she said.

"After high school?" he asked, and at her nod, sighed. "Well, I _want_ to apply to go to college. But there's my obligation to the Chipmunks."

Jeanette nodded. "I know what you mean."

"Do you want to go to college too?" Simon asked.

"Yes," she said, looking shame-faced. "I want to get a college education. I never wanted to be a performer for the rest of my life. I want to see how far I can go academically."

"Me too," Simon agreed.

"Have you told anyone?" Jeanette asked.

Simon rolled onto his back. "No. I keep meaning to talk to Alvin about it. The timing just never seems right. Between school, concerts, interviews, and our movies, it seems there's never a chance."

"Not to mention the fact that if he's anything like Brittany, he's been impossible to live with for the last month or so," Jeanette added.

"Exactly," Simon said. "I take it you haven't told anyone either?"

Jeanette shook her head. "I don't know how to. Brittany keeps making all of these big plans for the Chipettes after high school, and I just don't know. I think I want a break from show business for awhile."

"When does your contract expire?" Simon asked.

"January," she answered. "Yours?"

"Same," Simon said. "Dave probably did that to make it easier on himself."

"Probably," Jeanette said.

************************************************************************

"_Oh, Jeanette!" Miss Miller exclaimed. "You could have told your sisters that you wanted out. I'm sure they would have understood!"_

"_In hindsight, I know I should have told them, but it just seemed like the right time would come along, if I just waited for it. But it never did, and then we ran out of time," Jeanette said, her eyes filling up with tears._

"_There, there, dear," Miss Miller said. "So what happened?"_

"_Well, Simon and I agreed to keep each other's secrets, of course," Jeanette said, "But accidents happen…"_

************************************************************************

Theodore walked into the room he still shared with his brothers, looking for a book of recipes. The room was a disaster area. _You know, I think Alvin's right. We really do all need our own space now_, he thought. He looked through all of his stuff, and all of Alvin's stuff, but he couldn't find. _Guess I'll see if it maybe got mixed up with Simon's, by accident,_ he thought. He started going through his brother's drawers. He pushed aside some papers, and found a college catalog inside. _What's this? _he wondered.

Someone hummed as they came in through the door. Theodore looked up. It was Simon, whose eyes riveted on the book Theodore was holding.

"You went through my stuff, Theodore?" Simon snapped, closing the door carefully behind him.

"I'm sorry! I thought a book of recipes I have may have gotten mixed in with your stuff!" Theodore stammered as he handed Simon the book. He watched him put it back.

"Um, Simon? What is that?" Theodore asked.

Simon froze. He sighed. "If I tell you, you have to promise not to tell Alvin."

"I promise!" Theodore exclaimed.

"I'm thinking about applying to go to college after we graduate," Simon told him.

"What?! But what about the Chipmunks?" Theodore asked.

"I just want to try something else for awhile," Simon said.

"Alvin's not going to like this!" Theodore said.

"Which is precisely why I don't want him to know yet," Simon told him.

"Oh," Theodore said. He tilted his head, and saw another name on the book. _Jeanette Miller_. "Jeanette's planning on going to college too?"

Simon shuddered. "She's thinking about it. And that you can't tell anyone, not even Eleanor, and especially not Alvin or Brittany, okay?"

"What will happen to the bands without you guys?" Theodore asked.

"We don't know, Theodore, which is why we haven't decided yet whether we're going. We're also not sure whether we'll even get into our first choices of college."

"Are you kidding?! The two of you will both get into your first choice of college for sure! They would be crazy not to take you!" Theodore exclaimed.

"Thank you for the support, Theodore," Simon said gratefully. "Just make sure you don't tell anyone. Remember, you promised!"

"I remember. And I won't!"

************************************************************************

"_Poor Theodore," Jeanette said. "He couldn't know this was one promise he wouldn't be able to keep."_

_Miss Miller nodded. "But how do you know that's what happened?"_

"_After everything calmed down between us, he finally told me about that conversation," Jeanette said._

"_You mean Simon never did?"_

_Jeanette shook her head. "I don't know why he didn't tell me. By the time I found out Theodore knew, everyone else knew as well, and Simon and I weren't speaking to one another."_

"_Well, so far, I still don't see why most of you aren't talking to each other. It seems a simple enough thing," Miss Miller said._

"_It probably would have been too, if it hadn't been for who found out next, and what he did with that information…"_

************************************************************************

Theodore was busy cooking in the kitchen when Alvin slammed into it.

"I don't believe that girl! Who does she think she is?" he demanded.

"Who?" Theodore asked.

"Brittany! Who else?" Alvin said. "I'll show her a thing or two! She won the election by cheating! We'll show her and the Chipettes who's the best, won't we?"

"What do you mean, Alvin?" Theodore said.

"After we graduate! I have a ton of plans! They'll make her plans look like a children's birthday party before I'm done!" Alvin said.

"So she's making a lot of plans, too?" Theodore asked.

Alvin rolled his eyes. "Didn't I just say so? But we'll show her, won't we?" He put his arm around his brother.

"Um sure," Theodore said, pulling away. He continued mixing the ingredients together, and avoided the suspicious eyes of his brother.

"What's the matter with you? You're usually excited to hear my after-high school plans!"

"Well, I just have a lot on my mind," Theodore said.

"What could you possibly have on your mind? It's summer!" Alvin asked.

"Yes, it's summer," Theodore said. "But it's the summer before our last year of high school."

"So? That just means our last year that school will get in the way of our careers!" Alvin said.

"Well, what if there was something else I wanted to do? Besides being in the Chipmunks?" Theodore asked.

"What could possibly be better than the Chipmunks, Theodore? Fame, fortune, girls? What could be better than that?" Alvin demanded.

"What about school?" Theodore asked.

"School? _School?_ Don't make me laugh. What do we need school for?"

"Well, Simon," Theodore began, and then slapped his hand over his mouth.

"Simon? What does Simon have to do with this?" Alvin said, then stared at his youngest brother's reaction. He froze. "Does Simon want to go to college after high school? Is that where all of this is coming from? Does he want to leave the band, leave us high and dry? Is that it? Is he going to betray _me_, his own flesh and blood?" Alvin worked himself into a rage, not listening to any of Theodore's stammered explanations or attempts at stopping him.

Alvin turned and marched out of the kitchen into the basement, where Simon's laboratory was. He slammed into the room so hard he broke some of Simon's test tubes. Simon looked justifiably annoyed.

"You've never heard of knocking?" he asked dryly.

Alvin glared at him. "You've never heard of betrayal?"

"What?" Simon said. "Betrayal?"

Alvin squared up to him, though he still had to look up to his brother, by several inches. "Yeah, betrayal."

"My god, it's finally happened. You've gone completely insane," Simon said. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

"Well, how about this? I just found out that someone I trusted like a brother is planning on ditching me for greener pastures elsewhere! Do you deny it?" Alvin said.

"Alvin, what?" he began, and then he noticed Theodore inching into the room, looking like a dog who knew he was about to get scolded for doing something wrong. "You told him? Theodore, you promised!"

"I-it was an accident!" Theodore exclaimed.

"It was a miracle more like!" Alvin yelled. "So you admit that you were planning on going away to college without even telling me?"

"I was thinking about it! I wasn't sure I would," Simon said.

"Like that makes it any better! You were leaving the band! Ditching our family! You're a traitor! A blood traitor! You're as bad as another chipmunk I know who shall remain nameless!" Alvin shouted.

Simon rolled his eyes. "And you're as much a prima dona as she is. Small wonder Jeanette and I didn't want to tell anyone!"

"Jeanette? What the hell does she have—" Alvin cut himself off. A malicious look crossed his face. "Jeanette is planning on doing the same thing to Brittany as you are to me, isn't she?"

Simon's eyes widened as he realized what had slipped out of his mouth. "Alvin, don't," he said.

"Don't what?" Alvin said innocently.

"Don't do whatever it is you're planning on doing," Simon ordered.

"Who are you to tell me what to do? Certainly not my brother. My brother would have told me what he was planning. My brother wouldn't have made me make a fool out of myself talking about plans that will never come into being! My brother would not have lied to me! My brother would not be a traitor to his family, going along with the sister of a stupid bitch!" Alvin shouted, before stomping out of the room.

"I'm sorry, Simon," Theodore said in a small voice.

"Sorry? Sorry doesn't cut it this time, Theodore," Simon retorted. "I trusted you! I trusted you to keep your promise! Everything that happens from now on is on your head!"

Simon ran out of the room to follow Alvin. Theodore burst into tears, knowing Simon was right. _It is all my fault._

************************************************************************

"_Why didn't Simon warn you?" Miss Miller asked._

"_He didn't have time. Alvin knew exactly where Brittany was. He had just seen her a few minutes earlier at the mall. He went straight there, and by the time Simon tried to follow him, he had already lost his trail. And it was too late," Jeanette said. "The next part I'm a bit fuzzy on. I wasn't there for all of it, but…"_

************************************************************************

Brittany ordered a small shake from the Dairy Queen. She giggled.

"A girl can't watch her weight all the time," she said to her sisters.

Jeanette and Eleanor rolled their eyes.

"So where are we going to sit?" Eleanor asked.

"Right over there," Brittany said. "Anyway, the look on his face was priceless. I _know_ the Chipettes are going to be a bigger band than the Chipmunks, especially with someone like him as their lead singer."

Jeanette squirmed in her chair. She had made up her mind a few days earlier. As important as the Chipettes and he family were, she really wanted to go to college. She was just waiting for the right moment to tell Brittany.

"I have to go to the bathroom," she announced and left.

"Honestly, Brit, can't you just let this feud with Alvin lie?" Eleanor said.

"No, I can't Eleanor. I'm having far too much fun," Brittany said.

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Brittany, sooner or later, this is going to get out-of-hand, and then what are you going to do?"

"Honestly, Eleanor, you can be such a killjoy sometimes! Besides, everything's under control," Brittany said.

"Of course, you would think so. You always think you have_ everything_ under control, don't you Brittany?" a male voice spat at her.

"Oh, Alvin. Wasn't once enough today?" Brittany said. "I won that one. Do you want me to win this one too?"

"Oh, yes, Miss Perfect thinks she can win everything," Alvin snapped. "Thinks she has control of everything. But what if I were to tell you I knew something you didn't?"

"I would laugh," Brittany said airily. "Everyone knows I'm far smarter than you."

"Oh yeah? Well try this one on: your sister's planning on betraying you," Alvin said.

Brittany laughed. "You'll have to try a different tactic, Alvin. Eleanor would never betray me, and Jeanette certainly wouldn't."

"Oh yeah? Well, Jeanette already corrupted my brother. She's planning on going to college after we graduate!" Alvin yelled.

"Don't be ridiculous, Alvin," Brittany said. "Jeanette would never do such a thing without telling me first. Of course, your brother might, to get away from you."

But then Brittany looked at Eleanor who was staring at someone behind her. Brittany turned, and saw the guilty look on Jeanette's face. She leapt to her feet.

"It's true? What this-this-this jerk said! It's true!" she screamed at her sister. "You're leaving the band? You're destroying my career? All to go to some dumb school?!" She got in Jeanette's face. Tears began dripping from Jeanette's eyes.

"I'm sorry, Brittany. I'm sorry," she kept saying, but Brittany ignored it.

"Not as sorry as you will be! I can't believe you are doing this to me! To your own sister! You're a traitor!" Brittany screamed.

"Now hold on, Brittany," Eleanor said. "It was wrong of her not to tell you, but I'm sure she didn't mean it as a betrayal."

"You're sticking up for her?!" Brittany whirled on Eleanor. "You _never_ take my side! You're a traitor too! I hate you both!"

Brittany ran out of the mall, crying. Alvin smirked after her, until he saw the cold look on Eleanor's face and the tearful look on Jeanette's. He glared at Jeanette.

"You brought this on yourself by corrupting Simon," he said to her.

"Alvin Seville! You get the hell out of here right now! Haven't you done enough damage for one day?" Eleanor got into his face. He took his cue, and walked away.

"I'm sorry," Jeanette whispered.

Eleanor clenched her fists. "Why didn't you tell me, Jeanette? If you had warned me, maybe I would have been able to help you ease Brittany into it. And now look at this mess you've caused." Eleanor walked away.

Jeanette ran into the bathroom. She sat on a stall and cried.

************************************************************************

" _Well, that explains a lot, but not everything," Miss Miller said when Jeanette took a pause._

"_Brittany and Alvin felt betrayed by Simon and me, Miss Miller. They felt we betrayed them, not just as fellow band mates, but as siblings. That was bad enough, but the aftermath with Simon and me, and Eleanor and Theodore was worse," Jeanette said._

"_How could it be worse?" Miss Miller asked._

"_Well, Theodore and Eleanor were still going out, and then she found out about his role in the mess…"_

************************************************************************

"You did what?" Eleanor demanded of Theodore. The two of them were having dinner in a quiet restaurant. Theodore looked shame-faced, and she was shocked. "You told Alvin that Simon was planning on going to school?"

"Well, sort of. I was trying to see how Alvin would react to it, and then it sort of just slipped out," Theodore said.

Eleanor threw her napkin on the table, shaking her head. "One of my sisters isn't talking to me. I'm mad at the other sister for not telling me her secret, and you're telling me you knew all along, didn't tell anyone, and then let it slip out to the one person you shouldn't have?"

Theodore reached out his hand. "I'm so sorry, Eleanor. I was just trying to make things better."

"Well you failed miserably! I know it wasn't your secret to tell, but did you have to tell _Alvin?_ This whole problem is because you couldn't keep your mouth shut! I can't you believe you didn't tell me, but you let it slip to Alvin! To ALVIN, of all people! I never want to see you again!" Eleanor stormed out of the restaurant.

************************************************************************

"_That doesn't seem much like Eleanor," Miss Miller said._

"_Well, I think she was really angry about how icy things had become in our household. Brittany wasn't talking to either one of us. Eleanor was mad at me for not confiding in her, and I knew I deserved all of it," Jeanette said. "Theodore accepted his share of the blame as well, which was why he obeyed Eleanor's decree. He ensured that they would have to spend as little time together as possible."_

_Miss Miller nodded. "But what about you and Simon?"_

_Jeanette sighed. "Well, he spent the rest of the summer avoiding me. I finally had to confront him about it at school…"_

************************************************************************

"Simon, please, talk to me. I just need to know what happened," Jeanette begged in the hallway, in front of everyone.

Simon squirmed. "You really want to know? Well, my brother let it slip to my other brother that I was going to college. And then I mentioned that there was a reason why the two of us didn't want to tell anyone!"

"But why did you have to bring me into it, Simon? Why? I was getting ready to tell Brittany," Jeanette said.

"Were you? Were you really? I doubt it, Jeanette. You probably would have chickened out again. You do that a lot. Maybe it's good this all came out now. We all know where we all stand, and it's obviously not together. Good-bye," he walked away from her.

Jeanette stared after him, with tears in her eyes. Right before she started sobbing into her hands and turning away, she saw Eleanor chase after Simon.

Eleanor yanked on Simon's arm when she caught up with him, stopping him in his tracks.

"I can't believe you just spoke to Jeanette like that! To Jeanette, of all people! Especially since this is all _your_ family's fault. It's probably because of you that Jeanette kept her mouth shut in the first place!"

"What do you know?" Simon snapped.

Eleanor pursed her lips together. "Just this. Don't you _ever_ come near my sister again, Simon Seville! Or else!" Eleanor flounced away.

************************************************************************

"_I found that out much later. I couldn't understand why Simon avoided me even more after that. He even got classes traded around, so we weren't in any of the same classes," she said._

"_Oh my," Miss Miller said. "But that doesn't explain why you guys haven't made up. This sounds like a case of responsibility, remorse, and forgiveness. After all, look at you and Theodore"_

"_Theodore and I were different. We accepted responsibility for our actions, and found someone who was willing to forgive us for them," Jeanette shrugged. "I think that's everyone's problem. Some can't accept responsibility. Some can't forgive."_

"_And that's where you all stand? None of you are willing to forgive one another?" Miss Miller said._

"_I can't speak for the others," Jeanette said. "But I think Simon is drowning in a sea of guilt that he can't accept. Brittany is destroying her life without us. Alvin's bitterness seems stronger than ever. And I don't know about Eleanor. But Theodore is like me, willing to reach out until someone slaps us away."_

"_But it seems so little of a problem," Miss Miller said. "I know it was huge to all of you. But really, it sounds like a little forgiveness would go a long way here."  
_

"_Probably. And you're right. To others, maybe it is just a small problem," Jeanette said. "But everything is the end of the world when you're eighteen, and we were no different. Plus, the one thing that Alvin and Brittany could not handle was betrayal from their siblings. And both of them felt betrayed then, and still do, as far as I know."_

"_Why didn't any of you talk about this to each other?" Miss Miller asked. "Sounds to me like you've gotten it all figured out."_

"_But only after years of conversations with Theodore. I got little bits and pieces from Eleanor. And I can only guess based on what I know about the others," Jeanette said. "Besides, I think there comes a time when it's too late to talk. And I think we reached it long ago."_

"_But you still had contact that last year," Miss Miller pointed out. "You all were in that movie together. You did several interviews together, not to mention that final concert. Why didn't anyone talk then?"_

"_We were all still too angry, hurt, and raw. I think we all resented being forced into situations together, situations where we had to smile and pretend like all was well for the camera," Jeanette said. "Dave was right about not telling anyone in the public. But I think, in some ways, it made it harder.  
_

_Miss Miller looked at Jeanette, and saw how drained she was. She patted her leg. "Thank you for telling me, my dear. I'll go get the pizzas. You just rest here."_

_Jeanette closed her eyes, and tears slipped down her cheeks. She had had to relive too many memories, too many bad, but some that were precious and sweet. _Make it stop!_ she begged as she started sobbing._


	20. Heartbreak Hotel

Title: We are the Broken

Author: QteCuttlfish  
Rating: T (just in case)  
Type: Family/Drama  
Summary: Four years ago, the Chipmunk and Chipette bands broke up, and no one knows why. Now, all six are being drawn home when something terrible happens to someone they all love. Will they be able to forgive one another? Or are they destined to forever sing the blues?

Pairings: Traditional (AxB, SxJ, TxE)

Disclaimer: Obviously, Alvin and the Chipmunks do not belong to me. I just borrow them for my nefarious purposes, then return them unharmed later.

WARNING: This fic will imply mature themes, such as sex, drug use, and alcohol use, and some instances of swearing. You have been warned. Flames will be laughed at, scorned, and otherwise saved to be made fun of at a later time. Reviews, however, will be most appreciated!

Author's Note #1:

Thank you to Lystelle, lovearainynightx, PurpleFox93, Northgalus2002, Girl4Christ15, Dhanvantarie, chipmunksnchipettes, chipmunkandchipettelover, DiceRox09, autumnamberleaves, Kali101, THTfriends, and Skymouth for reviewing! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Northgalus2002, I think you're going to laugh when you reach the end of this chapter. I hope you like it. I've had it planned from the beginning. Some of the predictions you have made in your reviews made me laugh because of it! ^_^

Chapter Twenty

Heartbreak Hotel

Miss Miller walked back to the car with the pizzas. By the time she returned, Jeanette had calmed down enough to help her by taking the pizzas while Miss Miller got into the car. She settled into her seat.

"Are you all right, dear?" she said, looking at Jeanette.

Jeanette nodded. She smiled wearily. "I think I actually feel better," she said.

"That's good, dear. I'm glad you let it all out," Miss Miller said. "I think it was a long time in coming."

_Me too_, thought Jeanette. Her eyes widened as Miss Miller turned the car on, and she looked at the clock.

"Is that really the time?" she exclaimed.

"Yes," Miss Miller answered. "What's the problem?"

"Miss Miller, we've been gone for over an hour!" Jeanette said. "They're going to be so mad!"

"Oh phooey," Miss Miller said. "They'll expect it from me." She winked at her adopted daughter.

Jeanette had to admit she was probably right, but she couldn't help but be nervous as they drove back to the hospital. _After all, things are tense enough as it is, without making a bunch of tense, angry people wait for dinner_, she thought.

"Hey Miss Miller? Do you think it'll be okay to take the pizza into the hospital?" Jeanette asked.

"If anyone tries to stop us, just leave it to me, dear," Miss Miller patted her hand.

The two of them carried the pizzas and two six packs of pop Miss Miller had grabbed from the pizza place. As they marched into the hospital, Jeanette felt nervous. She looked over at the reception desk. The girl at the reception desk stared at her. She was talking on the phone, but quickly finished up on her conversation and ran after them.

"Um, Miss? Miss?" she said. "Jeanette Miller?"

Jeanette finally turned around, expecting to be yelled at. "Yes?"

"Um, sorry to yell out your identity," the receptionist apologized. "But I assume you're going to see David Seville?"

"Yes, we are," Miss Miller answered.

"Well, they just moved him to a different room," she said, and then told them the room number, and where to find it.

"Thank you," Jeanette said.

"No problem," the receptionist answered. "Besides, the Chipettes used to be my favorite band." She winked.

Jeanette blushed. "I don't think I will ever get used to that."

"What, fame?" Miss Miller asked.

"Yeah. I mean, it's easier having my sisters with me, but still, it's hard for me, to have people knowing who I am," Jeanette said.

The two of them went quiet as they went to Dave's new room. When they got there, the nurses were busy putting everything in order. They sent the two visitors to the waiting room on that floor, to wait with the rest of them.

Jeanette braced herself for the yelling as they walked into the room. But she was surprised. No one spoke and they all looked subdued. Jeanette expected the subdued part, but she did not expect the red eyes or puffy faces on all of them.

"What's wrong, children?" Miss Miller asked.

"It's Dave," Eleanor said, as Theodore began sobbing.

"What is it?" Jeanette said as she walked over to hug Theodore, getting a very bad feeling about everything. "Is it about his head injury?" She looked over at Simon expectantly, knowing that next to her, he was the most likely to have understood whatever the doctors had said about it.

Simon nodded. Brittany had her back turned, but her back shook as though she were crying. Alvin had a stony look on his face. Eleanor looked down, and Jeanette could tell she was fighting tears.

Simon sighed. He looked at Miss Miller, and Jeanette knew he was going to put it in laymen's terms, for her sake.

"The gist of it is, there is pressure in Dave's brain that needs to be relieved," Simon said.

"So he needs surgery then," Jeanette stated.

"That's where the problem lies," Simon began. "The place where the pressure originates is a really dangerous place to operate on. The operation is extremely risky and experimental. So experimental that Dave's insurance won't pay for it."

Alvin punched the wall. _Bang!_ Everyone jumped. Jeanette felt like she'd had ice water poured on her. "Can he afford it otherwise?"

"No!" Alvin exclaimed.

"Oh god," Jeanette said, closing her eyes. She swallowed hard. "How long does he have?" She knew pressure in the brain meant fatality if it couldn't be relieved.

Simon looked away from her. "Not more than a few months at most."

Jeanette had thought she was all cried out after her crying fit earlier. She wasn't. Her eyes filled with tears.

"Well," Miss Miller said awkwardly. "It will do David no good for all of us to get sick. There's no use in letting the pizza get cold. Everyone come and get a slice."

She opened the pizza boxes and put them on a table. Slowly, one by one, each walked over to grab a slice. Eleanor was the first one to the table, and she started handing out cans to everyone. Everyone began eating or attempting to eat in silence. Jeanette and Theodore sat together. Everyone else sat apart from one another.

Eleanor could not believe that this was one of her worst nightmares, come to life. Someone she loved was dying, actually dying, and all because of lack of funds. And what could she do about it? _Absolutely nothing_, she thought bitterly. She focused on her pizza, though she couldn't really taste it. Later, she could never remember what kind of pizza it was. She began listening to the radio.

"This is the request hour. Talk to me," the DJ said.

"Um, hi," the person said.

"Hi. What's your name?"

"Melissa. I love your show," she said.

"Thanks. So Melissa, what song do you want to listen to?" he asked.

"Um, I know this is going to sound strange, since it's nowhere near Christmas time, but my little brother's in the hospital, and we're not sure he's going to make it until Christmas," Melissa's voice filled with tears. "Could you play his favorite Christmas song?"

"I'm so sorry to hear that. I can totally do that for you. Which song is it?" he asked.

"The Chipmunk song," she said.

"And what's your little brother's name?" he asked.

"Davie," she said.

Eleanor's heart clenched.

"All right, in honor of Davie, 'The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't be Late),'" the DJ said.

The music started playing. Eleanor closed her eyes as she heard Dave's voice start speaking.

"_All right you Chipmunks, are you ready to sing your song?" _

"_I'll say we are!"_

"_Yeah, let's sing it now!"_

"_Okay Simon?"_

"_Okay."_

"_Okay Theodore?"_

"_Okay."_

"_Okay Alvin. Alvin? ALVIN!"_

"_Okay!"_

"_Christmas, Christmas time is near,_" the chipmunks began to sing.

Eleanor began to hum along with them. Then she softly began to sing with it. _I wish there was something the Chipmunks could do_. Her eyes widened. _Wait a minute!_

She didn't realize it, but she said it aloud.

"What?" Brittany said.

"Guys, I have an idea," Eleanor began. "Maybe a crazy idea. But an idea nonetheless."

"An idea for what?" Alvin snapped.

"For how we can help Dave!" Eleanor said.

"What kind of idea?" Miss Miller asked.

"Well, I was just thinking. How much do you think people would be willing to pay for concert tickets if the Chipmunks or the Chipettes ever reunited?" Eleanor asked.

"A lot," Simon said. "I think we all still get plenty of fan mail. And there are still plenty of groups dedicated to the two bands on the internet."

"Exactly," Eleanor said. "Now think about what they would pay for a one-time reunion concert with the reunited Chipmunks and Chipettes!"

Everyone's eyes widened. Miss Miller whistled.

"You would make quite a bundle, if you reunited for just one night," Miss Miller said.

"Oh my god," Jeanette breathed. "That's brilliant!" She offered Eleanor a bright smile, and got one in return.

"That is brilliant!" Theodore agreed.

"What?" Brittany said.

"Just this, Brittany. If we reunite our two bands for a one-night only reunion concert, we could make enough money to pay for Dave's surgery!" Eleanor offered.

"What?! Are you nuts?" Brittany said. "That would never work! We all hate each other! I don't know about the rest of you, but I was quite happy to stop working together, thank you."

"But, Brittany, it is a sound plan," Miss Miller said. "Especially if someone happened to tell the press why you six were reuniting. After all, everyone loves a good human interest story."

"I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I agree with _her_," Alvin said, pointing to Brittany. "The six of us cannot work together."

"Well, I agree with Eleanor," Jeanette said. "It is a great plan, and I would do anything to help Dave."

"Me too!" Theodore said.

Simon remained silent while everyone else was talking.

Eleanor rolled her eyes at Brittany. She grabbed her sister's arm. "I want to talk to you _alone_," she said, dragging her into the hallway.

"Ow! Eleanor, let go! You're hurting me!" she said.

Eleanor did as soon as they were in the hallway.

"What are you thinking?" Eleanor began. "What about your career?"

"What about my career?" Brittany said.

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Brittany, I happen to know for a fact that your career is not going quite so well. Yeah, you have interviews and a few photo-shoots, but when was the last time you actually did anything either as an actress or a singer?"

"Um, well," Brittany spluttered. "Everyone's career takes a downturn at some point!"

"Brittany! Your antics from your last movie and your missed engagements on your last concert tour have earned you a reputation as an unreliable party girl. Whatever career you have left, you have thanks to Dave," Eleanor ruthlessly pointed out. "What do you think will happen, should the worst happen to Dave?"

Brittany froze, her blue eyes wide. For once in her life, she was completely speechless. She knew everything Eleanor said was true; knew also that without Dave, if her life didn't go through some major changes, she would have no career left at all. She looked away from Eleanor.

Eleanor sighed. "Brittany, if we do this, it could be just the boost your career needs to keep going, especially if the reason why we're doing this gets out. Not to mention the whole reason why we're doing this in the first place, which is to save Dave's life!

"We owe him, Brittany. He's been like a father to us, and he didn't have to. He could have just focused on his sons, and left us alone. But he didn't. He managed our careers as much as the Chipmunks'. He's been there for us, as much as Miss Miller has, and for even longer."

Brittany sighed. "All right. All right! You win! But I'm telling you, it won't go well!"

"Brittany, we were able to survive six months of hell, with the six of us not talking to each other. I think you can survive one or two months of our company," Eleanor retorted right before they went back into the room.

Brittany had a sullen look on her face as Eleanor announced there were now four who'd agreed, but they needed all six. Everyone looked from Alvin to Simon. Simon turned his back on everyone. Jeanette saw the contemplative look on his face, and she knew he was at least thinking about it.

"Well, I haven't completely lost my mind," Alvin said.

"That's debatable," Brittany snapped.

Alvin glared at her. "I refuse to put myself through that torment."

"Not even to save your father?" Brittany said. "Who has always been there for you, through every crisis that you've caused in your life?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Alvin said.

Brittany gave him a knowing look. "My antics may be public knowledge, but your career is in just as much trouble as mine is. No one wants to hire someone who sleeps his way through every cast and crew of every movie he makes and every concert he performs at. You've caused just as much drama on set as I have. It's just been easier for Dave to keep yours a secret from the public. But it's not a secret to the Hollywood bigwigs, who are no longer willing to hire you, because of the risk of problems you always bring to the set."

Eleanor had to keep from smiling at the look on Alvin's face. It was a cross between rage and incredulity. Eleanor hadn't heard of any of that, but she knew Brittany was telling the truth from the look on Alvin's face. Like Brittany had been a few minutes earlier, he was now speechless.

"What? Nothing to say?" Brittany taunted. "Think about this, then. Your career could be boosted by this concert. You could redeem yourself in front of the producers. Not to mention the fact that your career would go the way of the dinosaurs if something happened to Dave, and you know it! So you don't have any choice. Save your father, and do something right for once in your pathetic life!"

"Brittany!" Miss Miller said then she turned to Alvin. "That was rather brutally put, but true nonetheless. Dave's told me about your career troubles. For now, you can still book concerts, but they are on a smaller scale than you used to. Besides, why wouldn't you do what you could to save your father's life?"

Miss Miller's kind voice pushed the fight right out of Alvin. His shoulders stooped as he took a deep breath.

"I guess you're right, Miss Miller." He took a deep breath. "I'm in."

"And that leaves only one," Miss Miller said, and they all turned to Simon. "What do you say, Simon?"

Simon looked at all of them. He remembered quite well how hard everything had been in the past, in that final year they had worked together. But he also knew that he had survived it then, and he could survive again. Plus his father _needed_ him. Without Simon, this plan would not work.

"Simon?" Jeanette couldn't help but say. He looked at her, into her hopeful green eyes.

He nodded. "I'm in."

_Finis Part One. To be continued…_

******

Author's Note #2:

First of all, I apologize for any mistakes I'm making that have to do with the hospital or anything to do with the medical stuff. It's not really my strong suit.

Second, I know that's not really a great place to end this. I'm sorry, but I have a good reason for ending it there. I have this entire fic outlined out. If I continued it in one fic, it would be 48 chapters long. There is also the fact that the main direction of the first half of the fic was really to get to what happened among the six. The focus of the second half of the fic will be in a different direction, so I've decided to take chapters 21-47, plus the epilogue, and turn it into a sequel fic entitled "The Heart of the Matter." I will try to have chapter one of that fic up by tomorrow night. Thanks you guys for sticking with this fic, and I hope you will continue on with the sequel!


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